Instant Snapshots
by Andrea.Cherrypie
Summary: The first time Lita listens to Ellie and not Lizzy. The first time Pete teaches Juan how to play golf. The first time Lizzy calls Ellie 'mom'. A series of loosely related one-shots featuring the Wagners and their 3 kids in the 4 months between Lizzy running away and their adoption. -Thank you for all the wonderful reviews so far :)
1. Chapter 1

**Pre-adoption**

"Hey", said Lizzy as she sat next to the boy with red hair. They were both outside, sitting on the steps leading to the back courtyard of their school.

The boy turned to her and, when he realized who was talking to him, shifted uncomfortably.

"Oh, hey," he replied.

"Listen", continued Lizzy. "I'm sorry my parents accosted you like that the other day."

"Oh…" Charlie stumbled for words, not knowing how to talk to the girl he had liked for a while. "Uh… It's okay"

"It's not, they shouldn't have done that, and I'm sorry."

Charlie didn't know how to respond. "It's fine… I mean, it's all good now." A few moments passed in uncomfortable silence.

"I guess I just wanted to explain" said Lizzy. "I mean, they thought you were somebody else… I guess their parental instincts kicked in."

Charlie nodded. "They thought I was the janitor, right?"

Lizzy nodded slowly.

"Did he do something to you?" Charlie asked tentatively.

"No… not really anyway." She sighed. "They just overreacted. And I'm sorry, I just don't want to have any bad blood between us, k?"

"Oh," responded Charlie. "Well, don't worry about it. No bad blood." He smiled, and Lizzy returned his smile. The two teenagers stayed silent for the next couple minutes, neither of them knowing what to say next.

"So," said Lizzy. "Are you artistic?"

"Uh… I guess."

"You guess?" Lizzy laughed. "What does that mean? You either know or you don't"

"I mean, I like to paint and stuff, but I spend a lot of my time playing piano."

"That's artistic!" said Lizzy.

"I guess… but… I don't know. I don't think you can call it artistic if you only play songs that other people wrote, you know?"

"I like to play the ukulele" said Lizzy. "And we have a piano at home. You should defo come by sometime, and we could do a mesh session."

Charlie looked up at her and smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah, really" said Lizzy.

In the distance, she could see people giving her weird looks for hanging out with a 'loser' like Charlie, but she didn't care.

"And I promise my parents won't harass you again, ever." She laughed, and Charlie joined her, although his laugh was a bit more uncomfortable.

"I… I thought they weren't your parents," he blurted, then caught himself realising he might have said too much. "I mean…uh… that's what I've heard…"

Lizzy stayed silent for a few seconds, shrugged her shoulders and said, "I guess they are now."


	2. Chapter 2

"Now honey just remember we can't use permanent markers again okay?"

"Okay grandma," said Lita as she fussed about with her grandma's face.

"Okay sweetie because last time, oh it really was… an experience, d'you know what I mean? I was trying to get that paint off my face for such a long time," said grandma Jan.

Lita smiled at this. "Did people give you funny looks when they saw you?" she asked.

"Oh yes," said Jan, "I remember... your grandpa made fun of me for a whole straight week!"

Lita giggled. "I am really going to make you a princess this time" she said with an over-enthusiasm only fitted for six-year-olds.

"Yeah? A pretty princess?" asked Jan.

"The most pretties princess I ever seen," said Lita.

Juan chose this moment to make an entrance into the living room where grandma and granddaughter where playing make up.

"Hey Lita you wanna come play spaceships with me? Dad just dropped off a whole bunch of boxes in the garage!"

"No thank you, I am turning grandma into a pretty princess"

At this, grandma Jan looked at Juan. "Do you want to join us, Whuan?" she asked.

Juan hesitated in front of the couch for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. "Okay," he said, then joined the girls on the sofa. "But can I turn grandma into a pirate?"

"No!" screamed Lita as she gave Juan an angry look.

"Hey," Jan intervened. "It's okay honey, maybe I can be a princess pirate, wouldn't that be fun?" she looked at Juan, who nodded enthusiastically, but Lita was not having it. She crossed her arms and frowned. "I don't want you to be a pirate princess, only want you to be a princes!"

"Well honey—" Jan started to say before she was cut off by Lita's scream.

"NO! I DON'T WANT A PIRATE!"

When it looked like things were going to escalate, Pete walked into the room.

"Hey what's going on?" he asked.

"Lita wants to paint grandma into a princess but I want to turn her into a pirate", said Juan. His lack of any sort of apology did not go unnoticed for Pete, who was proud of how far his son had come.

"Oh sweetheart," he said as he approached Lita. "Remember what we talked about? Sharing is caring. You have to share grandma Jan with your brother, alright?"

Lita looked at her dad in a defeated manner, sighed, and reluctantly said "okay".

Pete smiled and gave her a kiss. Lita was daddy's little girl and he knew it, using this to his advantage when it came to parent her. He ruffled Juan's hair, asking if he wanted to play with the boxes next, to which Juan said yes please, but only once he was done with grandma Jan. Once Pete left, grandma Jan turned to her grandchildren.

"So which colors do you want to use?"


	3. Chapter 3

"I just don't get it," said Lizzy as she slumped her head on the kitchen counter. She had been trying to solve the math problem sitting in front of her for the last hour, to no avail.

Pete walked by and noticed Lizzy's head on the table.

"Hey honey, you okay?"

"Yeah," said Lizzy raising her head. "It's just this stupid math problem, it doesn't make any sense. I should just give up, I'm clearly never gonna pass algebra."

"No, don't talk like that. Come here, let's see what you've got." Pete pulled out a chair and sat next to her. He read the math sheet a couple times, but his face made a frown that told Lizzy he didn't get it either.

"Forget it," said Lizzy. "It's fine, I can re-take algebra next year"

"Don't think like that. Okay, let's see what the internet says." Pete took out his phone and entered a few sentences into it. "Okay, according to this website, if you move the x to this side you should be able to figure out the missing link."

He took the pencil and started scribbling down. Lizzy watched him, half glad he was helping her, but half hoping he would do the rest of the math problems for her.

"Now missy, come on, are you paying attention? I'm not going to do this all for you!"

Lizzy smiled. "Yeah, I'm paying attention."

"Okay" said Pete. "Here, take the pencil. Now which number do you think is the quadrant of this other number?"

Lizzy looked at the paper but she couldn't see the answer. She guessed. "4?"

"That's right. Now what happens if you half four?"

"You get two."

"That's right. So what would happen if you halved x?"

"But how do you know that x is 4?"

"Because you change it to the other side of the equation, see?"

Suddenly something clicked in Lizzy. "Oh. So do you just like move it there?"

"Yeah."

Lizzy stared back at her paper then started writing things out as her brain figured out the answer.

"That's it honey, watch out for that one"

As she worked on the problem, Pete's hand moved to Lizzy's back and gently patted the small of her back. Lizzy found the gesture more comforting that either of them knew.


	4. Chapter 4

"And then Potato Chips told Mrs Oatmeal to come with her for tea, and Mrs Oatmeal said okay, and then they both went to have some tea, and then -ouch!"

Ellie and Lita were in the dinning room, where Ellie was doing a difficult braid on the little girl. She had seen a video of how to do Princess Anna's hairdo on YouTube recently, and, wanting to expand her mothering skills as well as earn some parent cool points, had decided Lita would be the best person to try it on.

"Oh no, I'm sorry honey, did that hurt you?" asked Ellie. Lita nodded her head, but quickly continued telling her everything about her day. Ellie was sitting on a chair, but Lita sat on the floor with her body between Ellie's knees so Ellie could have a better grasp of her hair.

"Oh! I forgot today Miss Stevenson gave Tyler a hug because he fell on the swing sets, so then I asked for a hug as well because I hurt my knee real bad, and-"

"Wait, when did you hurt your knee?" Ellie stopped braiding for a second as she turned to look at Lita with concern.

"I told you Mommy! When Juan was chasing me down the living room and I bumped into the sofa and it hurt real bad."

"But that was last week sweetie!" said Ellie, with some relief.

"But it still hurt real bad!" protested Lita.

"Okay, but you haven't hurt your knee since then, right honey?"

"Nah-uh" said Lita, who then proceeded to tell Ellie about how Miss Stevenson had given her a hug and it had lasted longer than Tyler's, which in Lita's world _obviously_ meant she was Miss Stevenson's favorite, all the while Ellie struggled to finish off Lita's braid.

Ellie had her phone propped on the dinning table with the video playing, but she kept having to stop and rewind it, the video went too fast for Ellie's beginner braiding skills. Lita was growing restless.

"Mommy are you done now?" she complained as she shifted uncomfortably.

"Sorry baby, I keep having to re-start this one part, but I promise once I'm done you'll look just like Princess Anna, won't that make you so happy?" she asked.

Lita threw her head back so that it rested between Ellie's knees, and looked up at Ellie. "No", she said.

"No?"

"Nah-uh", Lita said with a smile.

"What, why?" Ellie asked.

"Because I'm already so happy" Lita smiled.

"Oh yeah?"

"I am so happy you're my mommy" Lita said.

Ellie's breath nearly stopped, a knot quickly forming at the back of her throat. A few seconds passed before she could reply.

"I'm so happy I'm your mommy too", she said as she leaned in to kiss Lita's forehead.


	5. Chapter 5

"Fetch!" Juan threw the tennis ball across the park and Meatball shot running after it.

"Good job Meatball, now bring it back!" shouted Juan. But much to his disappointment, Meatball grabbed the ball and instead of bringing it back, lay down on the grass, chewing it.

"Meatball! Bring it back, c'mon!" He shouted again. Meatball looked at him and continued chewing the ball.

Juan sighed. "C'mon, Meatball, please," he pleaded, sounding defeated.

When Meatball continued to ignore him, he bowed his head and stared at floor.

"Hey buddy, you know what you forgot?" Juan turned to look at Pete, who had come up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. Juan shook his head in response.

"No, what?" he asked.

"Food", Pete said. He put a hand into his pocket and took out a few meaty treats for the dog. "His name is Meatball for a reason," he winked as he put a few of the treats on Juan's left hand.

Juan took the treats and turned to look at Meatball again. "Meatball, come here boy, look what I have!" He extended his hand to show Meatball the treats. At this, the dog's ears perked up and with the ball still in his mouth, he quickly made his way over to Juan.

"Thanks dad!" He said, as he gave some of the treats to Meatball.

"No problem. Meatball will do anything for food. Why don't you try throwing the ball again?" Pete asked.

"Okay" Juan took the ball from where the dog had dropped it on the floor and threw it once more. "Fetch!"

This time, Meatball ran after the ball, and once he got it, came running back, left the ball at Juan's feet, and sat down, expecting his well-deserved treat.

Juan was beaming. "Good boy!" he said as he threw another treat at Meatball. "Let's do that again okay?" he patted Meatball's head.

Behind him, Pete was smiling.


	6. Chapter 6

"Lita, _miráme, miráme_!" Lizzy shouted as she grabbed hold of her sister's face. "_Por qué haces esto? Cuantas veces te he dicho que no toques mis cosas?_"

Lita wriggled to get away.

"_Déjame!"_ The little girl shouted.

Both sisters were in the bathroom, fighting. Lita had 'borrowed' Lizzy's mascara, which now lay splattered all over Lita's face, as well as the wall.

"_Cuantas veces te he dicho que no toques mis cosas!?" _Lizzy asked again. "Look at me, you're going to clean up this mess and then go to your room and not come out until you've thought about you've done!"

"NO!" Lita broke free of her sister's hold, but Lizzy was quick and caught her by the arm instead.

"LITA, YOU ARE GOING TO CLEAN THIS UP!" She shouted.

The commotion brought Ellie into the scene.

"Hey! What in the world is going on?" She asked as she took in the situation.

Lizzy looked up at her. "This brat used my mascara for a personal art project, but now she's going to clean it up and go to her room without dinner"

"NO!" shouted Lita again. "Let me go!"

"_Lita, vas a hacer lo que te estoy diciendo, me escuchas? Me vas a hacer caso ahora mismo!" _said Lizzy through gritted teeth.

Ellie decided this was a great moment to intervene. Lizzy only ever used Spanish when she was trying to discipline Lita, a technique she had relied on for so long throughout their journey in foster care. But lately, situations like this had been rare.

"Okay, Lizzy, let go of Lita's arm right now," said Ellie.

Lizzy looked up at her in disbelief. "What?"

"Let Lita go, now," said Ellie, firmly. "Nobody is going without dinner tonight."

Lizzy complied reluctantly.

"Fine. You deal with this, Ellie," spat Lizzy.

Lita ran toward Ellie, who knelt down to look at her face. "Lita, honey, we have told you several times you do not play with Lizzy's make-up. You have your own drawing pens, and if you ever need more, all you gotta do is tell me or daddy, understand?"

Lita looked down at the floor and nodded slowly.

"Lizzy does not play with your toys, or with your pens. So you must also respect her stuff, and not play with it. Understand?"

Lita nodded.

"Look at me," said Ellie. Lita met her eyes without having to be told twice. "I want you to clean your face, and together we will wipe away the drawings from the wall, okay?"

"Okay" said Lita, nodding.

Lizzy was watching the whole thing unfold in front of her, with a hint of disbelief. She was surprised to see Lita actually listening to Ellie instead of her. She couldn't believe her words had not worked on her sister.

"But first," Ellie continued. "I want you to turn around, look at Lizzy in the eye, and apologize for playing with her make-up."

Lita looked down at the floor again, but slowly turned around. When she was facing Lizzy, she looked up at her sister. "I'm sorry," she said.

"Good," said Ellie. "Now Lizzy, what do you say?"

Lizzy was silent for a couple of seconds. "Uhm, don't play with my make-up again without permission, okay?"

Lita nodded at this. "Okay."

"Good!" said Ellie. "Now let's get you cleaned up. Lizzy, do you want to help?"

Lizzy had a hard time believing what had just happened: Lita listening to Ellie, and not her. Lita obeying without resistance. Spanish not having an effect on Lita. Ellie resolving the situation without difficulty. Something had changed in her relationship with Lita, she no longer had the power to discipline her like she used to. Although it scared her, she also realized something else: for the first time in a long time, she didn't have to be Lita's mom. For the first time, she could simply be her sister.

She could get on board with that.

"Sure, I can help," she said.


	7. Chapter 7

"We're moving!"

Pete and Ellie shouted, both with smiles on their faces and arms extended.

The kids, though, did not match that energy. Lizzy had a raised eyebrow and Lita and Juan had frowns on their faces.

"Aren't you guys excited?" asked Ellie. "We're moving to a new house!"

"Oh," was all Lizzy said.

"Come on guys, what's with the long faces?" asked Pete.

Juan and Lita looked at each other, and then back at the Wagners. Lita's lower lip started trembling.

"Are you gonna send us to live with someone else?" asked the little girl.

"Do we have to go pack our stuff now?" asked Juan, whose face was suddenly full of dread.

"What? No!" exclaimed Ellie.

"Of course not!" said Pete. "What are you guys talking about?"

"I don't wanna move" said Lita. "I like it here."

"Guys, we're not gonna send you to another place, this is your home, you're staying with us forever."

"Then why are we moving?" asked Juan.

Both Pete and Ellie looked at Lizzy, searching for some answers.

"Guys… I don't think that's what Pete and Ellie mean," she addressed her younger siblings, then looked at the Wagners. "Every time we've moved to a new house it's always because we had to change foster placements", she explained.

"Aw sweetie," said Ellie, coming over to Lita and taking her in her arms. "We are never sending you to another placement, okay? That's not the moving we mean."

"Then what do you mean?" asked the little girl.

"We're moving to a new house, _all of us_" explained Pete.

"All of us?" asked Juan.

"All of us" said Pete.

"Even Meatball?"

"Even Meatball" Pete reassured him.

"Do you guys know the house Daddy and I have been working on? Well, it's finally ready, and we thought instead of selling it, we're keeping it as ours," said Ellie.

"Yeah," added Pete. "And that means everyone can have their own bedroom, and we'll even have a spare room for when friends or family visit. Isn't that great?"

Pete looked at Lizzy. "Isn't that great, Lizzy?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure" she smiled.

Upon seeing their sister be happy about this, the two younger siblings relaxed a bit.

"Wouldn't you want to have your own bedroom to decorate it just the way you want, honey?" asked Ellie to Lita.

"Can I paint a castle on it?" she asked.

"Of course you can paint a castle on it." said Ellie.

"And can I decorate mine with the Clippers stuff?" asked Juan.

"Of course you can, buddy" said Pete.

"Even if you hate the Clippers?" asked Juan.

Pete laughed. "Hey, I don't hate the Clippers, and you know what, if you love the Clippers and they make you happy, then I love the Clippers too."

"And can I have a bed for Potato Chips and pink walls and a Princess bed?" asked Lita.

Ellie smiled. "Alright slow down sweetie, we are going decorate your rooms just the way you want them, but first we have a long journey ahead of us packing and moving, so let's not get ahead of ourselves, okay?"

"Okay! But I want a princess bedroom, and a pony, and-"

"Alright princess," intervened Pete "why don't you and I sit down tomorrow and you tell me all the things you want in your room, then Mommy and I will make sure we include as many of them in your new room, okay?"

Lita nodded enthusiastically.

"Lizzy how about your dream room, do you want us to paint it black again?" asked Ellie.

"Actually, I'm thinking maybe I can try out green." Lizzy gave Ellie a smile, knowing green had been the color Ellie had suggested to her the first time she moved in with them.

At this, Ellie smiled. Little by little, Lizzy's wall was coming down. She could hardly wait.


	8. Chapter 8

"That's it sweetheart, your ring finger on B and your index on E," said Ellie..

Juan moved his fingers to position them like Ellie was instructing him to.

"Good job, now on your left hand, the little finger and the thumb play the notes at the same time," Ellie put down her left hand and pressed the keys to show Juan. "See?"

Juan and Ellie were in the living room, practicing piano. Although he hadn't been playing for long, Juan was making good progress. Sometimes he would practice piano on his own, but today he was learning a new song and needed his mom's help with it.

"Like this?" Juan asked as he copied Ellie's hand position on the piano.

"Yes that's it! Now play that part altogether"

Juan looked at the music sheet, then at his hands, and slowly tried to co-ordinate them together. Playing a new song for the first time was always really slow-going for Juan, but both Pete and Ellie had noticed his general co-ordination had improved thanks to the piano lessons.

After a few tries, he could play the part perfectly.

"Good, good, that's great honey, why don't you try playing the whole song up until this part?" asked Ellie.

"Okay," said Juan. He changed the position of his hands on the piano so he could play the song from the beginning. Slowly, he made his way through the music sheet, playing the song perfectly, but when he got to the new part he'd just learnt, his fingers stumbled and he pressed a few wrong keys.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry!" he exclaimed as he removed his hands from the piano and covered his face with them. His whole body recoiled in anticipation, a classic trauma reaction that Juan had struggled with since his first day with the Wagners. Although Ellie and Pete had seen him react like this less and less, whenever it surfaced again it made them worry and wonder if their sweet little boy would ever heal completely.

"Hey, hey" said Ellie. "It's okay honey, it's okay, don't worry, come, look at me." Ellie turned to look at Juan and carefully removed his hands from his face. "It's alright, sweetie" she said as she caressed his face. "No need to panic, okay? I know you can do it." She took Juan's hands in her own and put them back on the piano. "Just try again, alright?"

Juan nodded and tried to play the new part again, nailing it perfectly.

"See? That was awesome, buddy!" exclaimed Ellie.

Juan smiled.

"Ready for the next part?" asked Ellie.

Juan nodded and positioned his hands on the piano again, but before he looked at the music sheet, he turned to Ellie. "Thanks for not hitting me, mom."

Ellie's heart stopped.

She didn't know how to respond to this. Juan had never explicitly made any mentions to his past trauma, all that she and Pete knew was their foster care history, and to the best of their knowledge, none of the kids' placements had been abusive. But what if they had? Or what if this trauma was from before foster care? A million thoughts crossed Ellie's mind but she couldn't formulate any words.

So she embraced him.

Juan took comfort in her hug, allowing her to hug him for a while. After a few moments, Ellie said "I would never, ever, ever hit you, honey. If someone did that to you before, I am deeply, deeply sorry. You should never have gone through that. It's wrong." She kissed the top of his head. "But I promise that I'm never gonna let anything like that happen to you ever again, okay?"

"Okay," said Juan, his voice muffled by Ellie's overbearing hug.

More questions popped into Ellie's mind. He had not denied being hit. So who had done this to him? How many times? Had they hit Lizzy and Lita too? She was dying to ask all of these questions but knew better than that. She took a deep breath. Juan had a right to his privacy, to his story. If he ever wanted to share things with her, he would do it on his own time, and she would be there to listen. If he decided to never share anything, she would respect his decision. It would not make her love him any less. She thought reminding him of this would be a good thing in that moment.

"I love you, buddy," she told him.

Juan's reply came after a few seconds.

"I love you too, mom"


	9. Chapter 9

"Saw you hanging out with Charlie the other day" said Savanna.

Lizzy looked up from her food. "Oh, yeah."

"Why are you hanging out with such a loser like him?" asked Kylie.

All three girls were sat together on the school cafeteria for lunch.

"He's not a loser… he's… artistic" said Lizzy.

"Isn't that what you said about Jacob?" teased Savanna.

"I bet the pictures he sent her were hella 'artistic'" added Kylie, causing both girls to laugh.

Lizzy stared down at her food, feeling more uncomfortable by the second.

"You remember when your fosters got Charlie to admit his plums weren't shaved _or _big?" said Kylie.

"Best moment of the school year!" shrieked Savanna.

"Hey!" snapped Lizzy. "Stop that."

"What's wrong? Nazi bitch grounded you again?" snarked Kylie, air quoting the word 'grounded'.

"Hey! She's not a bitch okay? And they're not my fosters, they're… my parents."

"You mean you foster parents?"

"No, I mean my parents. Now can we just eat this food in silence? Would really be an upgrade, thanks."

Kylie and Savanna looked at each other.

"Okay jeez… someone's on her time of the month…" remarked Kylie.

At this, Lizzy snapped. "Really? Do you have to be such a bitch all the time!?"

"Oh my god I don't understand you!" said Kylie. "A few weeks ago you would have jumped in on that train, and now we're not even allowed to call them your fosters?"

"Well it's not a few weeks ago anymore, okay?" replied Lizzy.

Savanna and Kylie fell silent.

"Okay, okay…" said Kylie, putting up her hands in defence. "We just thought you still hated living with them," said Kylie.

"Yeah I mean… last time you spoke about them you said you were really looking forward to living with your birth mom… then all we know is that things didn't work out… you haven't said much since so we thought they'd had something to do with that." Savanna added.

Lizzy sighed.

"Things have… changed." said Lizzy.

Both of her friends knew better than to question her any further, so they let the subject drop.

"So… Charlie, huh?"

Lizzy blushed.

"Yeah, Charlie."


	10. Chapter 10

"Saw you hanging out with Charlie the other day" said Savanna.

Lizzy looked up from her food. "Oh, yeah."

"Why are you hanging out with such a loser like him?" asked Kylie.

All three girls were sat together on the school cafeteria for lunch.

"He's not a loser… he's… artistic" said Lizzy.

"Isn't that what you said about Jacob?" teased Savanna.

"I bet the pictures he sent her were hella 'artistic'" added Kylie, causing both girls to laugh.

Lizzy stared down at her food, feeling more uncomfortable by the second.

"You remember when your fosters got Charlie to admit his plums weren't shaved _or _big?" snarked Savanna.

"Best moment of the school year!" shrieked Kylie.

"Hey!" snapped Lizzy. "Stop that."

"What's wrong? Nazi bitch grounded you again?" snarked Savanna, air quoting the word 'grounded'.

"Hey! She's not a bitch okay? And they're not my fosters, they're… my parents."

"You mean you foster parents?"

"No, I mean my parents. Now can we just eat this food in silence? Would really be an upgrade, thanks."

Kylie and Savanna looked at each other.

"Okay jeez… someone's on her time of the month…" remarked Savanna.

At this, Lizzy snapped. "Really? Do you have to be such a bitch all the time!?"

"Oh my god I don't understand you!" said Savanna. "A few weeks ago you would have jumped in on that train, and now we're not even allowed to call them your fosters?"

"Well it's not a few weeks ago anymore, okay?" replied Lizzy.

Savanna and Kylie fell silent.

"Okay, okay…" said Kylie, putting up her hands in defence. "We just thought you still hated living with them," said Kylie.

"Yeah I mean… last time you spoke about them you said you were really looking forward to living with your birth mom… then all we know is that things didn't work out… you haven't said much since so we thought they'd had something to do with that." Savanna added.

Lizzy sighed.

"Things have… changed." said Lizzy.

Both of her friends knew better than to question her any further, so they let the subject drop.

"So… Charlie, huh?"

Lizzy blushed.

"Yeah, Charlie."


	11. Chapter 11

_"__Happy birthday, dear Lita, happy birthday to you!"_

Lita took a deep breath and blew out the candles as hard as she could.

Applause erupted as family and friends cheered for the little girl, who was now turning 7.

They were all in the park celebrating a picnic-style birthday for Lita, much like the one the Wagners and their kids had gone to in the early days of their family. Ironically, today was the first day the Wagners were meeting Russ and Kim's new foster placement, who, if all worked out, would eventually become Lita, Lizzy and Juan's cousins.

Pete was the first one to lean in and engulf his little girl in hugs and kisses.

"Well done my little princess!" he said as he kissed her all around. Lita squirmed to break free of his hold in giggles, but replied: "I'm a big princess now!" Pete laughed at that.

Ellie's turn was next "Happy birthday, sweetheart" she kissed Lita's cheek.

As soon as she pulled back, Ellie was immediately overtaken by Grandma Sandy.

"My big girl! Happy birthday, munchkin'! Love ya!" Grandma Sandy squeezed her so tight Lita could hardly breathe. Grandma Jan, who had until that point been recording the whole thing on her phone, wanted in on congratulating her granddaughter too.

"Mommy I want to cut the cake, I want to cut the cake!" Lita managed to blurt out in between kisses from her grandmothers.

"Okay, okay!" said Ellie, "You can help cut the cake but I have to hold the knife, alright?"

"Alright," said Lita.

Pete passed the knife to Ellie, who helped Lita grab hold of it alongside her. Together they cut the first piece of cake, who Lita insisted go to her.

"Mom can I have the next piece?" asked Juan. He was immediately copied by all of Lita's school-friends, their cousins, and the kids from Pete and Ellie's foster parents support group, who also wanted the next piece.

"Alright everybody calm down, all of you will get a piece eventually, okay?" Pete shouted to all the kids.

"But Dad, I should get the next piece, I'm her brother!" protested Juan.

Ellie turned to Lita and asked "What do you think honey, should Juan get the next piece, or should it go to your new cousins?"

"YES!" screamed Lita, leaving Ellie without a clear answer.

"No, mom," protested Juan. "I want the next piece!"

"Appreciate it guys, but it's fine, Juan can have the next piece and Caleb and Daisy can have the ones after, right kiddos?" cut in Russ, who ruffled Caleb's hair.

Caleb shrugged. The 'new cousins' had been with Russ and Kim for a couple of weeks, but had been very shy most of the afternoon.

Together mother and daughter cut a piece for Juan, then Ellie helped Lita cut up the rest of the cake for Caleb and Daisy, who mouthed 'thank you' without making a sound, and then the rest of the kids present.

At the other end of the table, leaning back against a wall, Lizzy was watching the whole thing unfold. She couldn't believe how things had changed since Lita's last birthday, which they had spent with the Muskies. Their former fosters had naturally ignored her birthday, forcing Lizzy to spend what little money she had saved up on a grocery store cake so that her sister wouldn't feel abandoned. In a stolen moment the three siblings got, Lizzy had gathered them together and they had quietly sung happy birthday to Lita. Lizzy had forgotten to buy a candle, so she had had to hold up a lighter for Lita to blow. Juan's birthday had been spent in a similar manner. Lizzy had not had enough leftover money for presents. Watching her little sister distribute cake to all her friends and family, specially this new family of them, made her smile.

"Hey kid, want a piece of cake?" asked Pete, who had come up to her and was offering a plate with a slice of cake to her.

"Oh, sure," replied Lizzy as she took the plate from him.

For a while, both of them hung back in silence as they watched the younger kids eat cake and chat about nonsense.

"So. Caleb and Daisy. At least they didn't go for three all at once, huh?" joked Lizzy.

Pete chuckled. "Yeah, I think we're the only ones crazy enough to do that." Lizzy smiled at this. "But I wouldn't have it any other way," he added.

"Thanks for doing this", said Lizzy, her gaze fixed on the birthday festivities, unable to look at Pete in this rare moment of vulnerability.

"You know," he responded, "Lita told me how she celebrated her last few birthdays. You did good, kid. You did good."


	12. Chapter 12

"Come on guys, we're going to be late!" shouted Ellie.

"I'm coming I'm coming!" A seven-year-old came running into the hallway, where Pete and Ellie were waiting by the door.

"Did you go potty honey?" asked Ellie.

The seven-year-old froze as she remembered she hadn't. "Oops."

"Okay no worries, go now but be quick, okay?" said her mom.

Lita ran into the ground-floor bathroom.

"Lizzy, come on kiddo, we're late!" shouted Pete.

Lizzy's reply came from upstairs. "One minute, I'm trying to find a jacket!"

Pete turned to Ellie. "I'm going to get the car started. You got everything?" he asked.

"Yup. We'll come join you in a second." she replied.

Pete left the new family home to get the car started. They had moved less than a week ago, and boxes of stuff were still lying around everywhere. With the kids being in school, everything had become ten times more chaotic than it normally was, as the kids struggled to find stuff like clothes or toys for the day. Today, it seemed, was Lizzy's turn.

"Lizzy we're leaving in one minute with or without you!" shouted Ellie. Just then, Lizzy came running down the stairs.

"I'm here, I'm here!" she reassured Ellie. "Is Pete in the car?" she asked.

"Yes," replied Ellie. "Go and we'll meet you there as soon as Lita is done".

As Lizzy hurried out, the bathroom door opened, and out came Lita.

"I went potty!" the little girl shouted.

"Good girl" replied her mom. "Let's go, c'mon!" Ellie offered her hand to Lita, who took it, and both left to join Pete and Lizzy in the car.

Today, Juan had his first piano recital, and the Wagner family would not miss it for the world. While Lita and Lizzy had rushed home from school, Juan had stayed behind to get ready for the recital, and now the rest of the family would join him in the school auditorium to watch him perform.

...

"Look there's the piano!" exclaimed Lita when they went inside.

"Shh honey, we have to be quiet here, okay?" said Ellie. She took Lita's hand and guided her to the row of empty seats at the back of the auditorium. Pete followed, but when he looked behind him, he noticed his eldest daughter wasn't following.

"Lizzy, you coming sweetheart?" he asked.

Lizzy hesitated. When entering, she had noticed a blur of red head to her left. Charlie.

"Uhm, I'll catch up with you guys in a minute" she said, giving a sideways glance to where the red-headed boy was standing.

Pete followed her gaze and then gave her a knowing smile. "I see. Alright." He gave Lizzy a look and a quick wink, so quick Lizzy thought she had made it up. She blushed.

"Hey," Lizzy said as she approached Charlie.

"Oh hey Lizzy, I didn't know you would be here today," he said.

"Yeah here with my parents and sister, my brother Juan is performing. What about you? What brings you here?" she asked.

"My younger cousin Wendy is performing." he replied. "Mom dragged me out here so I feel inspired to play the piano better. She's really good."

His honesty made Lizzy smile.

"Hey now, I'm sure you're really good too," she said.

"I'm alright. Wendy is the genius of the family, mom gets really jealous of my aunt, so she tries to push me harder any chance she gets. I don't mind though. I like Wendy." He gave Lizzy a soft smile, which warmed Lizzy's heart.

"You're a good guy, you know?" she said.

"Uh… thanks, I guess," Charlie blushed.

In that moment, the lights dimmed.

"I guess it's about to start. Better find my family," he said.

"Oh, sure, yeah I better go find mine too. See ya later," Lizzy waved goodbye and went to find her family, which were sat in the second to last row. Lita was in between Pete and Ellie and the only empty seat was next to Ellie. Lizzy sat down next to her.

"Who were you talking to, hon?" Ellie asked.

"Oh… just… Charlie," Lizzy admitted.

Ellie's eyes widened. "You mean Charlie the boy we accosted Charlie?!"

"…yeah," said Lizzy.

"Oh my God! Do you think I should find him and apologize again? You know, I bet I could find out a way to make it up to him. Do you know if he likes pasta? Should we have him for dinner one night? Or would that be too much? Do his parents need any design work done? I could probably help them, or he's a teenager right? He likes skateboards right? Do you think I should—"

"Hey, stop!" Lizzy cut her off. "It's fine, really, I talked to him about it and he's cool, he doesn't hold it against you guys or anything. No need to apologize again." Lizzy said with a smile.

Ellie picked up on this. "Are you smiling? Is that a smile?" she asked knowingly.

Lizzy looked down at the floor, embarrassed at having shown her emotions so openly.

"Oh my god, that's a smile! That's totally a smile!" Ellie started teasing her daughter, but had to stop when the Principal came on stage to introduce the event of the evening.

"I know that smile!" said Ellie in a whisper.

"Shhh," said Lizzy, who couldn't stop grinning. "Let just watch the show, okay?"

Ellie gave Lizzy one last knowing look before turning her full attention onto the stage. Before she could help herself, she put one arm around Lizzy's shoulders, and hugged her close to her.

To Lizzy's own surprise, she didn't have the need to pull away or break free of the embrace. On the contrary, she found the gesture more comforting than she would care to admit.


	13. Chapter 13

"Daddy daddy, do you want to play restaurants with me?" asked an energetic 7-year-old.

Pete, who merely happened to be walking past Lita's bedroom, stopped in his tracks and made his way to his daughter's room.

"Oh, uh… now's not a great time, sweetheart" he apologized.

"Why not?" asked Lita.

"Well, uhm, the play offs are about to start and…"

"Don't you love me anymore?" Lita made a pouty face.

"What? Don't say stuff like that honey, you know I'll always love you," Pete said.

"Well come and play restaurants with me!" Lita crossed her arms in front of her.

Pete hesitated for a moment but then conceded. "Fine, but just a little while alright? Daddy wants to watch something on the TV".

Of course Lita knew Pete loved her. But she also knew how to push his buttons, milking the 'daddy's little girl' position any time she could.

Pete went inside Lita's new room. The whole family was still adjusting to their new home, but all the kids' rooms had been the first to be finished. Lita's room was a soft pink with white furniture, her bed had a small canopy, which hung from the ceiling and gave it the appearance of a princess bed. On the foot of her bed, there was a toy bed for Potato Chips, just like she had requested.

"Okay you sit here and I'll sit here," Lita guided her dad to her table set in the middle of her room, where Mrs Bunny and Potato Chips already occupied seats.

Pete sat down on one of the chairs, which was Lita's size, but made Pete look like a giant. On top of the table was a new tea set she had asked for as part of her new room décor.

"Alright, what kind of restaurant food are we having today?" asked Pete.

"Today we're having a tea party," responded Lita.

"I see, and what kind of tea are we having?" asked Pete.

"We're having pink tea," she said.

"Ooh, my favorite."

Lita picked up the teapot and pretended to pour tea into Pete's cup.

"Daddy, would you like a cookie to go with your tea?" she asked.

"Yes please," he said.

The little girl opened a plastic container and pretended to take out a cookie and place it on her dad's saucer. "Here you go"

"Why, thank you darling," said Pete.

"Potato chips and Mrs Bunny also want cookies. Can you serve them while I pour their tea?" asked Lita.

"Of course!" Pete pretended to take out two cookies and put them in front of the dolls.

"No! Not those ones! They want chocolate flavor!" complained Lita.

"Oh, I'm sorry honey, my bad," he said as he reached into the container and got out two more imaginary cookies.

"Don't apologize to me, apologize to them," Lita knitted her eyebrows in protest.

At this, Pete had to hold back a laugh. "Mrs Bunny, Potato Chips – my apologies," he said.

"They say it's okay. Daddy do you want a chocolate cookie as well?" she asked.

"Well I haven't finished eating my other cookie yet," he said.

"That's okay you can have it later," she said.

In that moment, Ellie walked past Lita's room, but then backtracked as she realized both her younger daughter and husband were inside having a tea party. Curious, she peeked inside, standing on the doorway.

"Now we have to clink our teacups." Lita took a teacup and raised it in the air. Pete followed her lead.

"No daddy, you have to extend your pinkie like this, see?"

"Of course. Is this okay?" he asked.

"Yup. Now we clink like this –cheers!" said Lita.

"Cheers!" said Pete.

From the doorway, Ellie's heart was bursting with love. Although she sometimes got jealous of Pete and Lita's special connection, the truth was she never got tired of seeing them interact together. If it were possible, it made her love her husband even more than she already did.

She couldn't believe how lucky she was.


	14. Chapter 14

"Juan, what you watchin'?" asked Lita as she came into the living room.

"Oh, just a documentary about sharks. But we can watch anything else, I don't mind," he said as he passed the remote to Lita. His sister changed the channel to her favorite kids' show.

"I love this show!" she said.

Both siblings watched the show in silence, with the occasional laugh by Lita. They were alone in the living room, their parents and elder sister somewhere upstairs. Meatball was with them on the couch, happy to be gently stroked by Juan. After a while, the elder sibling broke the silence.

"Do you ever get scared?" he asked.

Lita replied without taking her eyes off the screen. "Of what?"

"Of our birth mom coming to take us away," he said.

"Nah-uh" Lita replied, rather nonchalantly.

"How come?" pressed Juan, whose concern had been tearing at him for a while.

"Because mommy promised we'll stay here forever," said the little girl.

"But what if she comes anyway?"

Lita finally tore her eyes away from the TV and looked at her brother.

"Do you want to watch anything else?" Lita asked, annoyed.

"Huh? Oh, no, it's okay." Juan looked apologetic.

"Well can I watch my show in peace?" Lita crossed her arms in front of her.

"Yeah, sorry" said Juan. He stood up and walked to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and got out a juice carton, sat on the kitchen chair and sighed. Meatball followed him and rested his head on Juan's lap. Juan didn't want to admit it to anyone, but sometimes he worried.

Memories about Carla were fading, but to him they were clearer than to Lita, who had entered the foster system when she was just a toddler. He remembered the hunger, most of all. The noise. The dirt. As he stroked Meatball's head, he couldn't help but feel scared. What if everything disappeared? He finally had his own room, decorated with Clippers merch. He had a dog, Meatball. He had a safe house, there was no yelling, no hitting, and there was always enough food to go around. Most importantly, he had a mom and a dad that cared for him, what he had always wanted. What if everything was taken away, like it almost had? He couldn't bring himself to articulate these feelings to anybody, he was too embarrassed.

"Mommy won't let it happen," said a soft voice.

"Huh?" Juan looked up.

Lita had appeared in the kitchen and stood in front of him. "Mommy won't let our birth mother take us away," she said.

Juan was silent for a while. "But… but what if Lizzy tries again?" he asked.

Lita replied in a heartbeat. "I'll scream," she said with a smile.

Juan chuckled. "I'll scream too."

"We'll both scream until our lungs explode. Then we'll get to stay here."

"Okay," said Juan.

"Wanna come and watch TV with me?" Lita asked.

"Sure. C'mon Meatball, let's go back to the couch."

Meatball obliged.


	15. Chapter 15

"Mommy, mommy, how do I look?"

Lita came running up to Ellie's bedroom to show her the witch costume she had put on. She spun around in circles and made several poses as she showed Ellie her costume.

"Oh my goodness, you look super scary!" said Ellie, coming closer to her. "Do you want me to put your make up on?" she asked.

"Yes!" Lita shouted,

"Mom! Look! Mom, mom!" Juan's shouts came just as Ellie was about to guide Lita to the bathroom to apply her make up. He stood in front of his mother and sister, wearing a Dracula costume, complete with cape and fangs.

"Oh sweetheart, you look amazing!" Ellie said.

"Look, look at the fangs!" He said as he put on the fake fangs to show Ellie.

"That's great, they look good!" she said, but then switched her attention to Lita, who had started pulling at her arm.

"Mommy let's go! Do my make up!" she protested, trying to drag her mom to the bathroom by the arm.

"Wait, no, mom, do my make up first, it will be faster"

"NO!" shouted Lita, reluctant to wait any longer for her make up.

"Hey," said Ellie, giving Lita a stern look, "no shouting or I won't do any make up at all, alright?"

"But I was first!" protested Lita.

"She's right," Ellie said to Juan, "she got here first, so I'm going to do her make up now, but I promise I'll be fast and then I'll do yours, okay?"

"Alright," said Juan, thinking it sounded like a fair compromise.

"Actually," said Ellie, "why don't you ask Lizzy? I'm sure she can help you as well"

At that suggestion Juan's face dropped. It's not that he didn't want his older sister's help. It's that for as long as he could remember, Lizzy had always been the one helping him and Lita get ready for Halloween, on the few occasions they had celebrated. When they lived with their birth mom, Lizzy had been the one to rip out old t-shirts and make them look raggedy and scary in the absence of costumes. She had done their make up and hair, and taken them trick or treating if the neighborhoods they lived in were safe enough. Neither Carla nor any of their previous foster parents had engaged with them at all, and this would be the first year he would have a mom to help him get ready, like the rest of his classmates. He didn't want to miss out on that.

Somehow, Ellie seemed to understand all of this by the look on Juan's face.

"You know what?" she said, "never mind, I'm sure I'll be done soon"

"Okay!" said Juan.

In that moment Pete's voice came from downstairs.

"I got the candy!" he shouted.

"That's great honey!" Ellie shouted back. "Put it inside the pumpkin bucket with the rest of the sweeties."

"Are the kids ready?" he asked.

"Mommy's doing my make up!" shouted Lita.

"And mine too!" added Juan.

"Sounds great, I'll wait here, don't want to ruin the surprise!"

When Ellie was done with Lita, she called Juan to the bathroom while her youngest daughter ran out in search of her older sister. Lita was desperate to show Lizzy her complete costume and make up.

"Lizzy, trick or treat!" said Lita as she knocked on Lizzy's door.

When Lizzy opened the door, Lita immediately shouted "Boo!"

"Ah! A scary witch!" said Lizzy, pretending to cover her face in fear.

Lita giggled. Her face was pale and she was wearing purple lipstick and two fake blood streaks running down from the corners of her mouth to her chin. "Guess who did my make up?"

"Was it mommy?" asked Lizzy. More and more it was becoming easier to refer to Pete and Ellie as 'mom' and 'dad' when talking to her siblings, although it was still hard to call them that directly.

"Yup! Do you like it?" asked Lita.

"It looks great," said Lizzy.

"I'm going to show daddy!" said the little girl, who took off running down the stairs to show Pete her Halloween costume before Lizzy could get in another word.

Moments later, Juan came to her room to do exactly what their youngest sibling had done moments before.

"You look like a scary vampire, Juan" Lizzy complimented her brother.

"Thanks! I can't wait to show my friends!" he said, then also took off running downstairs to show Pete.

Lizzy was happy to see both her younger siblings so excited. It was nice for a change not having to worry about money for costumes, or using up her lipsticks as make up for her siblings. It was nice to be able to make plans with friends because she didn't have to take her siblings trick or treating, and specially nice that they lived in a safe neighborhood where Juan and Lita could join the other kids in trick or treating without fear of being attacked.

"You ready, hon?" Ellie interrupted Lizzy's thoughts as she stood in front of her room holding a jacket, all ready to go.

"Yeah, let me just get my purse," said Lizzy.

"Mommy! Lizzy! Let's go!" Lita's voice came from the ground floor. They were all due to go trick or treating as a family, and she could hardly wait any longer to get candy and show off her costume to her neighbors.

"We're coming sweetheart!" Ellie shouted back. "Ready?" she asked Lizzy.

"Yeah, let's go."

"Are you sure you want to join us for a bit? We wouldn't mind if you wanted to go straight to Savanna's, you know" said Ellie.

"No, it's okay. It'll be good. Plus it's still too early to head there anyway," said Lizzy.

"Alright," said Ellie.

"Here you are!" said Pete as soon as Ellie and Lizzy got downstairs. "Before we go out, everyone pose for a picture."

"Daddy, no, let's go!" protested Lita, eager to get out and get her candy.

"Nope, not before I have a picture of all of you. Yes, that includes you, Lizzy."

"What? I'm not even wearing a costume!"

"Don't care. C'mon everyone look at me and say, 'Happy Halloween!'"

Reluctantly, Juan, Lita and Lizzy posed for the picture with Ellie. Pete could not have been happier. This was the first Halloween they were celebrating as a family, and he would not miss this moment in a million years.

"Happy Halloween!"

The second the picture was taken, Lita and Juan wasted no time getting everyone out the door and into the night.


	16. Chapter 16

"_Me llamo Peter_"

"Meh ja-moh Peter"

"_Como te llamas_?"

"Common teh ja-mas?"

"That's good, now I would reply _me llamo_ Lizzy, and you would ask me where I live."

"Oh I know that one, it's done vives, right?" Pete asked.

"_Donde,_" Lizzy chuckled.

Lizzy and Pete were in the back garden, practising Spanish. Neither had made this a formality, rather, it had become a spontaneous occurrence, borne out of Pete's genuine desire to communicate with Lizzy in Spanish. It would be a sentence here, a tongue-twister there. It added to the fun of it.

"I knew that," said Pete. "_Hola, me llamo Pete y vivo en California. Como te llamas_?"

Lizzy couldn't help but laugh at his accent. "Me llamo Lizzy."

"_Donde vives_?" asked Pete.

"_Yo tambien vivo en California,_" she replied.

"What's 'tambien'? Oh wait, that's 'also', right?"

"Yeah, it is!" Lizzy exclaimed.

They hadn't been doing this for long, it had only started happening frequently since they moved to the new house. When Lizzy declared what her new room would be, she made a point to say _'_This will be my room,_ mi cuarto' _so Pete would get that '_cuarto'_ means 'room', and not 'quarter of milk'. Since then, Pete had come to her more and more with questions about how to say this word or another word in Spanish, and she had complied. She couldn't kid herself, she liked it.

"See? This old head of mine can do more than just fix up houses," Pete joked. "Let me try another one: _Cual es tu color favorito?"_

"Mi color favorito…." At this, Lizzy hesistated. What was her favorite color? Up until recently, it had been black. But since coming to the new house and painting her new room green, it was growing on her. "_Verde,"_ she decided.

"_Verde?"_ Pete was surprised to hear the answer. "_Porque yo pensaba que es negro_".

Lizzy smiled, embarrassed. Pete had got the verb conjugation wrong, but he had picked up on her answer. _Verde._ Green.

She shrugged. "_Ya no." _Black was not her favorite color anymore.

"I see. Bueno, _me gusta mucho verde_." he said. 'I like green very much'. His Spanish was so rudimentary it made Lizzy cringe.

"Wherever did you learn to say that?" she said, smiling.

Pete laughed. "What, don't you like it? I've got another one for you, wait for it…. _Tengo una hija preciosa._"

Lizzy cringed even harder at the words 'I have a beautiful daughter' in broken Spanish.

"Oh my god, stop!" Lizzy was laughing hard.

"What, you don't agree?" Pete was laughing with her.

"Seriously Da- Pete, stop it!" she said. Although both continue giggling, something heavy settled on the air. Pete knew what she had almost said. Lizzy knew what she had almost said.

And truth be told, she wanted to. She was dying to call Pete 'dad', to join her younger siblings and acknowledge Pete for what he was: her dad. It would be so easy. She had never had a father figure growing up, Pete was the first one to fulfil the role. Calling him 'dad' wouldn't take the title away from anyone... But Lizzy knew both Lita and Juan had called Pete 'dad' first before they called Ellie 'mom', and Lizzy wanted this time to be different for Ellie. After everything she had done for them, she deserved that.

She also knew that would be a lot harder. The idea of calling Ellie 'mom' made Lizzy feel like she was betraying Carla, even if that was not the case at all. She would have to get over that first if she was ever going to call Ellie 'mom'. However, she knew she would, eventually. She was already referring to Ellie as 'mom' or 'mommy' to her siblings. And Pete and Ellie only talked about each other as 'your dad' or 'your mom' even when talking to Lizzy. No more 'Pete' or 'Ellie', just 'Mom' and 'Dad'. So it was coming, she knew it. She just wasn't ready yet.

"Come on, let's go help your mom with dinner" Pete said as he stood up.

_Your mom_. Lizzy thought. Case in point.


	17. Chapter 17

"Remember at 3 we have Lita's play, and at 6 we have Lizzy's soccer match," said Ellie as she fluffed the pillows, ready for bed.

"Got it," responded Pete. "Are we taking your car or should I bring the truck?"

"I think the car is fine, are you coming straight from the site?" asked Ellie, referring to the new house they were working on.

"I'll come home first so I can leave with you. Oh wait, what about Lizzy? Maybe I should take the truck and pick her up so we can meet you guys there," said Pete as he got in bed.

"No it's fine, she said she's getting a ride from Kylie. She might join us a bit later as she'll be finishing school when the play starts but she really wants to make it," said Ellie.

"She okay with us rushing off to her match straight after?" asked Pete.

Ellie got in bed as well. "Yeah, play finishes at 4:30 so plenty of time to get ready. She'll leave her things at school so she doesn't have to carry them around."

"Alright, that's fine then. I'm pretty sure my mom is coming, by the way," he said.

"I'm pretty sure Kim and Russ are bringing their kids. Not surprised if they join us for Lizzy's match as well. By the way, Daisy has her school performance next week, we've been invited. Lizzy can't make it, but I was planning on taking Juan and Lita. You should come too." Ellie said as she picked up her phone from her nightstand.

"Which day?"

"hmm, let me check," said Ellie, scrolling through her phone. "Thursday."

"What time?"

"4pm"

"I should be free then, but remind me again tomorrow, or next week," said Pete.

"I'll remind you tomorrow _and _next week," said Ellie knowingly.

"Oh, almost forgot. Made Juan that dentist appointment I told you I'd get around to eventually."

"Oh, finally!?" teased Ellie.

"Hey!" protested Pete. "I've been too busy with the house, okay?"

Ellie smiled.

"Anyway, I'm taking him straight after school tomorrow, and since I have to pick him up I thought I might as well take Lita too. What do you think?"

"Take Lita to the dentist as well?" asked Ellie.

"Well yeah, or if not she can come with and we can get ice cream after," he said.

"Oh yeah, great idea, make them get cavities straight after the dentist," Ellie rolled her eyes.

"Fine, we can do something else," Pete raised his hands in protest.

"It's okay, that sounded like a good plan. I'm picking up Lizzy, then?" asked Ellie.

"Sure. Oh, you know what she asked me the other day?" said Pete.

"Who, Lizzy?"

"Yeah. She asked if I could give her driving lessons." Pete grinned, but Ellie did not match his reaction.

Ellie put her phone down.

"What? That's not fair, I know how to drive, I can also teach her!" she whispered-shouted to Pete, something both of them had got really skilled at doing.

"Well honey, maybe she just feels more comfortable asking me."

"So what, you're saying she hates me?" asked Ellie, a little bit offended.

"What? No! That's not what I said at all! I'm just saying, perhaps she sees this as a traditional daddy-daughter activity and maybe that's why she asked me. I'm sure she asks you for help when it comes to female stuff," said Pete.

"No she doesn't, she hates me, I tell you. I know she's agreed to stay with us, and I know we still have a long way to go, but I just feel like she's shutting me out. She doesn't like discussing her period, or boys, or anything that is girl related. Why are you smiling?"

"Because can you believe what's happening?" asked Pete.

"What do you mean?" asked Ellie, feeling confused.

"We're on our bed, casually discussing our kids' routines, frustrated because our eldest child won't open up to us."

Ellie didn't know where this was going.

"How is this different from any other night?" she asked.

"Don't you remember, all those months ago, when we were on our bed in the old house, but we were discussing how to get rid of them?" asked Pete.

Ellie dropped her gaze. "Yeah…"

"Can you believe we actually had that discussion?" he asked.

Ellie pursed her lips. She didn't feel proud of that moment.

"Can you believe how different our lives would have ben if we had given up on them?" he continued.

"Or if Carla had been ready to be a parent again," chimed in Ellie.

"I can't believe we even entertained the thought of putting our children back into the system," said Pete.

"I don't think I was ever serious about it," said Ellie.

"I don't think I was either. Although Carla came close in making those wishes come true," said Pete.

Ellie went quiet.

"I have nightmares about that sometimes…" she started. "I just keep dreaming that she's going to get out of rehab and want to play families again, specially since the .26 hearing hasn't happened yet."

"I know," said Pete. "Me too. But it's unlikely that happens again, and anyway, Lizzy wants us to adopt Lita and Juan. We know that."

"But is that what she wants for herself? I know it's easy for you to say, she adores you. I just feel like the harder I try the more she pushes me away." Ellie rested her head on her hands.

Pete sighed.

"Hey, come here." He enveloped Ellie in a hug. "She loves you. I know it. I see it. I see it in the way she lets you hold her. I see it in the way she lets you brush her hair. I see it in the way she asks for your opinion on some outfits. I see it on the way her favorite color changed to green, which you suggested to her. I see it on the way she lets you parent Lita and Juan. I see it in the way she lets herself be driven to school by you every morning."

Ellie snorted. "Not anymore."

"Hey, it's normal to want some independence. When I was her age all I wanted was to get the hell away from my mom. If she's asked for this then it's a sign she feels comfortable enough to act that way. We've come a long way. She'll get there. Give her time." Pete kissed the top her head.

Ellie broke away from the hug to look up at him. She smiled. She knew he was right.

"I can't believe how blessed we are to have them," she said.

"They were the best decision we ever made," said Pete.

Ellie agreed.


	18. Chapter 18

"Get him! Get him! Get him now, Dad!"

"I'm trying, I'm trying!"

"He's coming up behind you!"

"Aghh!"

"Dad, look out!"

Juan and Pete were in the living room. The girls were all away: Lizzy out with friends and Lita with Ellie doing shopping for a school project. Juan and Pete had free roam of the house, which they had chosen to exploit by jumping on the Xbox.

"I'm running out of health potions!" shouted Pete.

"I can't see the next check point!" shouted Juan.

It wasn't every day that father and son could spend a whole afternoon playing videogames being as loud as they wanted, as the TV was usually taken by the girls wanting to watch movies or shows.

"Juan, behind you!" shouted Pete.

Juan responded by rapidly pressing buttons on the controller.

"I don't know how to clear this level!" said Juan

"Okay buddy, you stand watch while I have a look," said Pete.

On the screen, the two characters swapped positions.

"Don't let any zombies go past, alright?" asked Pete.

"I'll try," said Juan.

"Did you check under this crate earlier?" asked Pete.

Juan stopped looking at his side of the screen to look at Pete's, but in that moment a zombie started running toward him at full speed.

"JUAN WATCH OUT!" screamed Pete, pointing at the screen.

Juan went back to shooting at the zombie, moving his hands frantically around the controller.

"Dad, I need back up! It's not going down!"

"You have to hold on, I'm not done with this area yet!"

Both father and son had frowns on their faces, taking the videogame more seriously than they should.

"Dad! Dad! Help!" shouted Juan.

"Just one more minute!" said Pete, moving his character all around the screen.

"DAD! THERE'S MORE!" screamed Juan, nudging Pete on the elbow.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming, hold on!"

"HURRY!"

"I'm here, I'm –ow, they got me! You have to hide!" said Pete.

"I can't, I'm surrounded!"

"I'm out of ammo!" shouted Pete

"Dad, DAD! It's coming for me!"

"Jump!"

"I can't!"

"Ju-" Pete's scream was cut short by the flashing 'GAME OVER' lights on the screen.

"NOOOOO!" Juan protested.

"Aw man!" complained Pete.

Both of them sighed at the same time.

"We were close this time, right?" asked Juan.

"So close!" Pete lounged back on the sofa. "What are we going to do?" he asked, with a defeated look on his face

"Try again?" asked Juan.

"It's like the third time, we just can't seem to go past this level," said Pete.

"Oh! We could look up a YouTube walk through!" suggested Juan.

Pete frowned. "Will they have it for this level?"

"Yeah!" said Juan, with a grin on his face. "They have it for everything!"

Pete raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Then heck yeah, let's look at the walkthrough!" he said. "Why didn't you suggest this earlier, buddy?"

Juan shrugged his shoulders. "It just feels a little bit like cheating," he said.

"You're right," said Pete. "But we've done this level a couple times and we're still getting stuck. I think it's time for a little help, eh?" Pete winked at Juan.

Juan smiled. "Yeah."

"Come here" said Pete, extending one arm toward Juan.

Juan complied.

"When did you get so smart?" asked Pete, ruffling Juan's hair, one of his favorite things to do.

"Dad, let go," said Juan, pulling away from Pete. "C'mon let's watch the tutorial, get your phone out!"

Pete could not help but notice how sure of himself Juan was becoming, a far cry from the insecure kid that had first come to live with them.

"Alright, alright, here you go" said Pete, handing the phone to Juan.

Juan took the phone and immediately set about finding the video he wanted, all the while sporting a smile on his face. Nothing made him happier than spending time with his dad.


	19. Chapter 19

"Caleb!"

"Hey Lizzy!"

"It's good to see you, dude," she said.

"You too," replied Caleb.

The teenagers did their secret handshake as they sat on the couch.

The Wagners were visiting the Firelli s for a family lunch. Lita and Juan had taken off running towards the garden after Daisy told them she had been gifted a new trampoline. Meanwhile, the adults gathered in the kitchen to talk and catch up. Following advice from Pete and Ellie, this was the first time Kim and Russ were allowing the Wagners to visit with all three kids since taking in Caleb and Daisy. Lizzy had purposely sought out Caleb, who was in the living room playing videogames, to find out how he was doing, knowing all too well what he must be going through as the only teen in the house.

"How have you been?" she asked.

"Alright," replied Caleb.

"And Daisy?"

"She's good too."

"I'm glad. You settled in the new school?"

Caleb shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah I guess. I still can't believe we ended up in related placements though."

"I know!" Lizzy laughed.

"Remember at the last adoption fair," continued Caleb, "how we were saying it would be cool for this to happen so we could hang out more?"

"Yeah I remember."

"Well this is probably the coolest part of being here."

Lizzy jokingly punched Caleb on the arm. "So, how's it going with your new parents?" she winked.

"My new fosters you mean?"

Lizzy smiled. That expression was very common among foster kids, who never called foster carers 'parents' until they were sure they would not be returned to the system.

"They're alright," said Caleb. "The mom's a bit intense, but the dad's cool."

"Yeah, aunt Kim can be _really_ intense sometimes," Lizzy chuckled. "I remember one time when she was watching us she insisted I wash my hands twice before dinner."

Caleb frowned. "Why do you call her 'aunt'?"

"Well, she and Ellie are sisters. You knew that, right?" asked Lizzy.

"No, I know," he said. "But Ellie isn't your mom. And the Wagners aren't your parents, just like the Firellis aren't mine."

Lizzy was taken aback by his comment. She knew where it was coming from, but it had been so long since she'd been in the 'foster kid' mindset that she had forgotten what it felt like.

"I get it," she said. "I was like that at the beginning, but you'll be surprised."

"No, I won't," said Caleb. "I'll be disappointed, just like always. It sucks though, cause Daisy really likes them."

"Hey, you don't know that you'll be disappointed," said Lizzy.

"Yes, I do," insisted Caleb.

"Look, all I'm saying is Kim and Russ are good people, and they seem to really care about you. Yeah they're a bit intense, but I've known them for a while and I can promise they're not like other fosters. I know you won't believe me but I'm just saying you don't need to have your guard up all the time. You'll be fine," she said.

"What's gotten into you?" asked Caleb.

"What do you mean?"

"Have you forgotten everything about being a foster kid? There's no such thing as happy endings for us. Rule number one: never get attached," he said.

"Yeah no, I get it, I'm just saying—"

"Lizzy, you're not listening." Caleb interrupted her. "There's no such thing as happy endings for us, the older ones. The teens. Remember?"

Lizzy went silent.

"Russ and Kim are going to get tired of me just like every other foster family we've had," said Caleb. "It doesn't matter whether the placement is adoptive or not. They're going to grow tired of having a full-grown kid around the house, instead of a little toddler they can shape how they want. I'm just sorry about Daisy, cause there's no way I'm letting us be separated."

Caleb's words resonated with Lizzy. As much as she had hated watching Juan and Lita be devastated at having to leave the Wagners back when she was trying to reunite with their birth mother, she had known it was important to not be separated by the system. Now, however, things had changed. Lizzy could see how happy her siblings were with Pete and Ellie, and she wouldn't dream of trying to separate them again.

"Well, you don't know that's what will happen—"

"Dude, it's what always happens. Have you for real forgotten everything?"

Lizzy was about to reply when she was interrupted by a screaming 7-year-old. "Mommy! Daddy! You have to watch me do a spin in the trampoline!" Lita shouted excitedly as she ran past on her way to the kitchen. Shortly after, Juan followed. "Dad! I can do a back flip! I can do a backflip! You have to come watch!"

Caleb turned to look at Lizzy. "I see your siblings are already comfortable with your fosters. Perhaps the Wagners will keep them, but you have to stop lying to yourself about the fact that they actually want you. Sooner or later they're going to get tired of you, especially when they learn all about your past shit. That's the sad part of us, older kids. Wake up Lizzy. It's not going to end well." He turned his attention back to the videogame, leaving Lizzy speechless.

As much as she wanted to tell him it would be the other way, the truth was she didn't know otherwise. All previous placements had ended badly. And he was right: the Wagners didn't know many things about her past. Would they still want her when they learned more? Knowing that she wouldn't have it in her to separate Lita and Juan from Pete and Ellie again, that could only mean one thing: she would be the only one to leave. Caleb had planted a small seed of worry, and as much as she didn't want it to, it was growing fast.


	20. Chapter 20

"Lizzy sweetheart, do you want green beans or mashed potatoes?" asked Ellie.

"I don't care", spat Lizzy.

"Do you want both?" Ellie asked again.

"I said I don't care!" Lizzy raised her voice.

"Okay, okay, I'll just give you mash," said Ellie.

It was clear that something was going on with Lizzy, but Ellie had been unable to find out what. In the past few days she had become withdrawn, barely uttering more than a few words to anyone. Ellie had tried to get Lizzy to talk about it but Lizzy had dodged the subject, reassuring her that she was 'fine' or 'just hadn't had enough coffee'. While Lizzy had not yet opened up completely to Ellie, this new distance was something Ellie hadn't experienced since the early days of the placement. And it was evident that today things were worse.

"Whatever," said Lizzy as she sat down on the table.

Juan and Lita were already seated, talking between them. They were only waiting for Pete now. Lizzy got out her phone. As Ellie finished serving the food, she noticed Lizzy hadn't interacted with her siblings either. Lately, she had barely wanted to spend time with them, choosing instead to be distracted by technology.

"Honey! Dinner's ready!" called Ellie.

Pete promptly joined them at the table, greeting his younger children with a kiss on Lita's forehead and a ruffle of Juan's hair.

"How was everyone's day at school today?" he asked as soon as they finished saying grace.

Lita immediately started telling them all about the gold star she had been given, while Juan chimed in about the new video game that everyone in his class was playing and how much he wanted to get it.

Lizzy, on the other hand, went back to scrolling through her phone. Pete noticed. He had noticed her being on her phone a lot lately.

"Lizzy, sweetheart, why don't you put your phone down? You haven't touched your food," he said.

Lizzy rolled her eyes. She grabbed a fork and took a mouthful, but continued scrolling through her phone.

Ellie was eyeing the situation carefully; she could sense Lizzy's mood but didn't want to undermine Pete.

"You haven't talked about your day, Liz. Did you have a nice one?" asked Pete.

"It was fine," said Lizzy, not looking up from her phone.

"Made any new friends?"

"No."

"Had any exams?"

"No."

"You know, it would help if I didn't feel like I was talking to a broken record," said Pete.

"Lizzy only knows one word!" Lita giggled.

"Hey, can you at least look at me when I talk?" asked Pete.

Lizzy ignored him.

Pete sighed. "Lizzy."

There was no reaction from his eldest daughter.

"Lizzy, put the phone down," said Pete.

Lizzy continued to ignore him.

"Lizzy," said Pete, this time more sternly. "Put down your phone."

"No," said Lizzy.

"Lizzy –"

"Or what?" asked Lizzy, looking at him straight in the eye. "You'll take it off me? You know you're not allowed to touch my property."

Pete was about to reply, but Ellie interjected.

"Lizzy, honey, if something's troubling you, you can tell us, you know?" said Ellie.

Lizzy rolled her eyes. "I'm fine."

"Did something happen in school? Is there anything we can do? You've been a little off the past few days," said Ellie.

"I said I'm fine, can we just drop it?"

"Lizzy—"

"Just leave me the hell alone, okay!?"

"Hey, don't talk to you mom like that!" said Pete.

"She's not my real mom!" Lizzy snapped.

Everyone went quiet for a second as they took in what Lizzy had said.

"Okay, that's it!" said Ellie, standing up. "Lizzy, get in the car right now."

Lizzy frowned. "What!?"

"In the car. Right. Now." said Ellie through gritted teeth.

"Are you crazy!?" Lizzy was in disbelief.

"NOW!" shouted Ellie.

Juan jumped.

"Uh huh…" said Lita.

"UGH! You're SO ANNOYING!" Lizzy shouted as she left the table, headed for the front entrance.

Ellie turned to Pete. "Honey, if I'm not back before bedtime, can you put the kids to bed?"

Pete was confused "Where're you –"

"Is Lizzy okay?" asked Juan before Pete could finish.

"We're just going to go for a little ride," said Ellie.

...

Neither spoke as Ellie rode through town. Lizzy had chosen the back seat so she wouldn't have to be close to Ellie. She had her phone with her and was silently scrolling through it, too angry to actually register any of the content on the screen. She didn't know where they were going, but she figured wherever it was, she could deal with it. As Ellie made an unfamiliar turn, she wondered if this was it, if the Wagners had finally given up on her and were going to put her back into the system, like Caleb had suggested. Suddenly, the car stopped. Ellie killed the engine.

Lizzy looked out the window but the darkness didn't let her see much. It seemed like an open field, maybe some sort of park.

"Where are we?" she asked.

"Get out," said Ellie. Lizzy wondered if maybe Ellie was going to ditch her there, but was somewhat relieved to see her get out the car too.

Ellie started walking and Lizzy had no choice but to follow.

"I could call my case worker and tell her you're starving me, you know?" said Lizzy, trying to rile Ellie. "Wouldn't take long for them to come and pick me up."

Ellie was silent.

"If this is some kind of joke, it's not funny," said Lizzy, but was once again met with silence form Ellie.

After a couple minutes, they came to a stop.

Lizzy immediately recognized the location. They were in the county park where the adoption fair had taken place, all those months ago. They were facing the stairs where she and the other teens had hung out for the day. They were in the same spot where she and the Wagners had met, what seemed like a lifetime ago. She was very confused.

"Do you recognize this spot?" asked Ellie.

"Why are we here?"

"Maybe we didn't make it clear enough before. Why do you think we took you in?"

"We're not seriously doing this now," said Lizzy.

"Why did we take you in?" Ellie repeated.

Lizzy refused to answer.

After a moment of silence, Ellie answered the question. "You were what was missing from our lives, Lizzy."

Lizzy sneered. "You know that's bullshit."

Ellie shook her head, convinced Lizzy was reusing an old argument. "I did not take you in to make me feel good about myself Lizzy…."

"No," Lizzy stopped her. "Maybe you took Juan and Lita in because _they_ were what was missing form your lives. But not me. Everyone knows I'm just the extra baggage."

"Oh really? Really?!" asked Ellie.

"Yes really!" Lizzy snapped. She turned to look at Ellie. "I'm just the extra baggage that came with the little cute kids you wanted, and one day you're going to realize that you actually don't want a 15-year-old girl because you'd much rather have little cute kids that you can shape how you want and you're just going to put me back into the system before I can fuck up your life even more!" she shouted.

"Is that seriously what you think!?" asked Ellie.

"It's what always happens!" said Lizzy, this times with tears in her eyes. "You wanna know why? Because news flash: you're not my real mom!"

"For the love of God, Lizzy," Ellie's voice cracked. "Did you see us talking to Juan or Lita during the adoption fair!?"

Lizzy went silent.

"Did you? No! We talked to _you_" Ellie started crying. "Right here, on this spot. We talked to you. We wanted _you._ You made us want you. Not Juan, not Lita, _you_. It just happened that you came with those two beautiful baby angels, and we knew we would love them as much as we love you. But it's been you all along."

Lizzy turned her back to Ellie as she tried to compose herself. Ellie's words were starting to get to her, and she didn't like it.

"And I'm not saying I know everything about you," continue Ellie, "or that I understand what you've been through, but I can tell you that I'm gonna be here for you whenever you decide to tell me, and after that too. I'm not going anywhere, missy."

Lizzy was trying really hard not break down.

"I know I'll never be your biological mother, but you know what? The love I have for you? It's as real as it gets. So don't give me that bullshit that I'm not your real mom, because this? This is real."

"Stop! Stop it!" Lizzy covered her face and fought back the tears with everything she had.

"Oh, Lizzy." Ellie came up to Lizzy and enveloped her in a hug. She fully expected Lizzy to push her away, but was relieved when that didn't happen. Physical touch like this was almost a no-go between them. "Sweetheart, I'm never going to replace your biological mother. But I love you very, very, very much. And you don't have to do this by yourself anymore. I'm here for you, we're here for you, and that's always going to be the case, okay? Always." said Ellie.

Despite her best efforts, Lizzy couldn't help but let the tears run down her face. Pretty soon after, she started sobbing, causing Ellie to hug her tighter. She let her.

The two stayed like that, Ellie caressing Lizzy's hair and Lizzy crying in her arms, until Lizzy's sobs came to a slow.

"Do you want to talk about what's going, on or do you want to go home?" asked Ellie after some time.

Lizzy shook her head. "I wanna go home."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Do you promise you'll at least be off your phone during family meals?"

Lizzy smiled. "Yeah, I promise."

"Okay then. C'mon, let's get some food in you before you call your caseworker," Ellie joked.

Lizzy laughed.

She couldn't tell her what was really going on: that since her visit with Caleb she had been paranoid that he was actually right, that Pete and Ellie didn't want her, only her siblings. That if Pete and Ellie found out about her past, they would abandon her immediately. It didn't matter that she had been told otherwise time after time, because the past had shown her how easy it was for her loved ones to break their promises. But somehow, this time felt different. Only the future could tell what would actually happen, but for now, it seemed that Caleb might be wrong after all.


	21. Chapter 21

"Do you want any water, sweetheart?" asked Ellie.

Juan shook his head.

"How about a snack?" she asked.

He shook his head again. He was lying on Ellie's bed, cuddling up to her with his head on her chest. He had woken up feeling ill and Pete and Ellie had decided that he should stay home from school. As Ellie could do design work from home, she had stayed with him while everyone else was away.

"Okay honey, just let me know, alright?" she said.

Juan nodded. "Can we watch the one with the cat again?" he asked.

"The one with the orange one from a couple videos ago?"

"No, the one with the black cat."

"Oh, sure," said Ellie.

Both were watching funny YouTube videos on Ellie's phone to pass the time. Juan had spent all day resting, first on his bed, then on the couch in the living room, and now on Pete and Ellie's bed. Ellie was gently stroking his hair with one hand while the other held her phone up.

"Hmm, honey," she said. "You're feeling a little bit warm again. Let me go get more wet towels for your forehead."

She started to move away but Juan stopped her.

"No, stay with me, mommy," he protested.

Ellie pursed her lips but went back to stroking his hair. "Okay, let me text your dad, see how long until he gets home," she said before pausing the video to text Pete.

Almost immediately Pete texted back to say he was on his way.

"Oh good, daddy's coming back soon. Once he gets here, we'll put a wet towel on your forehead, and then we'll try and eat a little something again, okay?" she said.

Juan groaned but didn't say anything.

"Buddy, you gotta eat to get your energy back up," she said.

"Okay," said Juan, reluctantly.

They went back to watching YouTube on Ellie's phone. After about ten minutes, they heard the downstairs front door open and close, and Meatball barking to greet Pete home.

"Hey, I'm back!" Pete shouted. "Where are you guys?"

"Upstairs in the master bedroom!" Ellie shouted back.

When Pete got to the room, he took in the sight of Juan resting on Ellie, and his heart melted a little bit.

"Aw buddy, still not feeling great?" he asked.

Juan looked up at him and shook his head.

"I'm so glad you're back," said Ellie. "I'm a little bit worried about his temperature. Can you feel his forehead?"

Pete rested his hand on Juan's forehead for a moment.

"I mean it's a little warm, but I don't think it's a high fever," he said.

"Do you think we should take him to the ER?" asked Ellie, ever the worried parent.

"Don't be crazy, he'll be fine," said Pete.

"I'm just worried his temperature has been up and down the whole day," said Ellie.

"That's normal, his body just needs rest to fight off whatever he has," he said. "Shall I bring some wet towels?"

"Oh yes please," said Ellie, "And maybe some chips from downstairs, he's barely eaten anything today."

"Got it," said Pete as he scrambled around the master bathroom preparing the wet towels. "Hey, how about I go pick up some chicken soup from the shop out front? I'm sure that will help make him feel better."

"That's a good idea! In between doing design work and taking care of him, I haven't done any cooking today," said Ellie.

"No problem." Pete brought a bowl full of cold water with a couple of face towels inside and put it on the bedside table. "I can also get some dinner on the way back from picking up the girls," he said.

"Sounds great" said Ellie, passing the phone to Juan and turning to get a wet towel. "Okay buddy, let's get this on your forehead."

"Alright, I'll be right back."

"Thank you honey," said Ellie as she waved Pete goodbye.

"Mommy will you stay with me here?" asked Juan.

"Yeah, I'm staying right here with you, baby" she said as she kissed the top of his head and the put a wet towel on it. She took the phone from him and put her free arm around him, allowing him to cuddle up to her again.

"What do you want to play next?"


	22. Chapter 22

"Hey Lizzy!"

The teen girl looked up. "Oh, hey Charlie."

"Mind if I sit?"

"No of course, go ahead."

Charlie pulled out a chair from the table and sat in front of Lizzy. "Haven't done this in a while," he said.

"Oh, yeah…" said Lizzy, looking down at her food. She went back to twisting a fork inside a bowl filled to the rim with pasta. "Sorry, it's been a bit crazy, what with finals, soccer practice..."

The two teenagers were on the cafeteria for lunch period. Having lunch together like this had almost become a routine among the two of them, although it hadn't happened much lately.

"No, no, I feel you; I've also been a bit busy," said Charlie as he opened up his backpack and got out a sandwich.

"What have you been up to?" she asked.

"Just piano and school. Had a science project due last week so that took a lot of my time. But my family and I went camping last weekend and that was a nice break," he said, taking a bite out of his sandwich.

"That's cool," said Lizzy, looking up at Charlie. "I love camping. I went with my…uhm… well, not that long ago. It was a lot of fun."

Charlie swallowed. "How's it going with your…" he started, but left the words hanging in the air.

Lizzy went back to looking at her food and twisting the fork around.

"…Family?" he finally said after seeing no response from Lizzy.

"Not bad, I just—" she started saying, but then shook her head. "Never mind. It's fine. It's all good."

Charlie took another bite from his sandwich. Lizzy still hadn't taken a bite out of her food. The two of them sat in uncomfortable silence while Charlie chewed.

"You've seemed a little off lately," he finally ventured. "Not that I've been stalking you or anything, I just mean, I've seen you around the hallways and at the cafeteria when I've come to get food."

"Oh yeah no, I get it," said Lizzy. "I just… well, I guess I have been a little off lately."

Charlie put his sandwich down. "Can I ask why?"

Lizzy looked up at him. "Yeah, I mean, just silly stuff, I guess?" she smiled in attempt to make light of the situation. Charlie wasn't fooled.

"Do you have to move foster placements again? I thought this one was final," he said.

"Yeah no it is, I mean, it's supposed to be," said Lizzy.

"Do you not want it to?" he asked.

"I do, I just—" she closed her eyes and paused for a moment. "I don't know."

There was a moment of silence while Lizzy took her first bite.

"Sorry," she said with her mouth full. "I'm boring you with my stupid stuff. Got any big recitals coming up?"

"Not until the end of the year," said Charlie, "and you don't have to apologize. You're not boring me or anything. Your family seem quite nice."

Lizzy let out a laugh.

"How can you say that after how they accosted you!?"

Charlie smiled. "But they thought I was someone else! Plus, well, they did it because they care, right? I think, it would have been worse if they hadn't."

Lizzy sighed and looked away. "Yeah, I guess."

"Do you not want them to care?" Charlie knitted his eyebrows.

"I do, I just—," she sighed again. "I'm just… worried, I guess?"

"Worried?" asked Charlie.

"Yeah like, what if they wake up one day and realize they don't actually want this, you know?" she said.

"This?"

"Me," she paused. "What if they don't want me. Wouldn't be the first time."

Charlie stayed quiet for a moment.

"Oh god, I'm sorry," said Lizzy, breaking the silence. "I don't know why I'm blurting all of this."

She went back to her food and took another bite. Charlie still didn't say anything.

"Have they given you a reason to think they don't want you?" he finally asked.

"No," Lizzy smiled. "It's been the opposite actually. I just, I know how this works." Her smile disappeared. "Adults always say one thing but then they do another."

Charlie took a bite out of his sandwich and chewed slowly.

"Well, I don't know if this helps," he said, pausing to swallow, "but when you parents realized I wasn't Jacob, they asked me if I knew anyone by that name, but like, they asked if I knew anyone by that name who had been hanging around with their daughter, Lizzy Viara."

Lizzy frowned.

"What I mean is, they called you their 'daughter', even then. And that was the day before the hearing, right? So, they knew your birth mom could potentially reunite, but they still called you their daughter. I think that says a lot."

Lizzy was stunned in silence for the next few minutes. She looked down at her food. Charlie gave her the space to process what he had just said.

Finally, she looked up at him. "Yeah, I guess that says a lot," she said.

She let out a small, genuine smile.


	23. Chapter 23

"Alright buddy, feet apart, keep the ball in the middle, good, now bend your knees slightly."

"Like this?"

"Yeah, awesome. Now let's work on your grip. Put your feet together for this and remember what I said about starting from the top."

"Why can't I just take a shot now?"

"You need to nail down your grip first."

"But I just want to take a shot!"

"Buddy, I've told you the grip is the most important part! You may not hit the ball or it might go all over the place if you don't nail this down first."

Juan and Pete were at the golf course, where Pete was showing his son how to play golf. Although Juan's sports interests lay mostly in basketball -and the occasional friendly soccer match against Lizzy- Pete was determined to show his only son how to play a sport he genuinely enjoyed.

"I can aim it at the hole, look!" said Juan.

Pete laughed.

"Fine, try like that, but your grip is all wrong, my friend."

Juan swung back the golf club and took a shot. Instead of hitting the ball, he hit grass, and the momentum of the swing made him lose his grip on the club and send it flying.

"Whoops."

"What did I tell you?" said Pete, trying to suppress a smile and act angry, but failing miserably.

"Wait let me try again!" said Juan as he ran off after the golf club.

"Juan, Juan!" Pete shouted after him. "Buddy, you gotta get your grip first!"

"But it's boring!" Juan shouted back.

"Once you nail it down it will become more interesting, I promise!"

Juan sighed as he walked back to Pete. "Fine."

Pete took this as a sign of encouragement. Juan had become more confident over the last few months and it was reassuring to see him displaying emotions that were not apologetic.

"Alright, let's try again. Let's do grip first. Feet together, standing straight, point the leading edge straight up."

Juan did as he was told.

"Good, now take your right hand and position the handle from the middle of your index finger to the bottom of your little finger."

"Hmm, like this?"

Pete came behind Juan and took his hands in his, correcting his position.

"Like this. Good, now close your hand. Good. Take your left hand and start at the top of the club, and slide it down to the handle. Great. Put your left thumb on top of your right one. Got it?"

Juan nodded.

"I'm going to walk away, but I want you to hold it, okay?"

"Okay," said Juan.

Pete took a step back.

"Good, now lower the club to the ground and make sure it's straight. Do you see it straight?"

Juan looked down. "Uhh, I think so."

Pete went behind him to check.

"Okay, not bad. Now, this is when you move your feet apart like we practiced -shoulder length, that's it. Bend your knees, good. Now point the leading edge of the club 90 degrees towards the ball."

Juan made a face as he tried to remember what a 90-degree angle looked like. He ended up pointing the club something that looked like 45 degrees.

Pete chuckled to himself.

"That's 45 degrees, son," he said as he personally adjusted the club in Juan's hands.

"Uhm, sorry?" said Juan.

Pete smiled again.

"It's okay. Now, with your knees still bent, slowly swing the club back and take the shot, keeping the club straight."

Juan did as he was told and took a shot at the ball, this time with a lot less force. It did not land very far. He twisted his mouth. "Sorry."

"No no, that was great! Let's try again."

Juan did so. After about ten tries, he could throw the ball somewhat far and it would travel somewhat in the direction of the hole.

"See? Wasn't so bad, eh?"

Juan smiled but shrugged his shoulders. "Still prefer basketball, though." He picked up the golf bag and walked off to collect the balls, leaving Pete speechless.

"I'm going to pretend you did _not_ just say that!" Pete shouted behind him.

Juan turned around and smiled.

"I'm serious, or you might not get that videogame you want!" he shouted as he shot off after Juan.

"Dad, stop playing, I know you already bought it on eBay!" said Juan. "Mom told me!"

Pete's jaw dropped. "Well… I might decide to keep it for myself!" he said as he caught up to Juan.

"No, you wouldn't, you don't even like that game!" said Juan.

"Well, I would learn to like it."

Juan turned around and mockingly punched Pete in the stomach. "Stop! C'mon Dad, let's go."

Behind him, Pete laughed.


	24. Chapter 24

"Which cereal do you want, honey? Lucky Charms, Froot Loops or Frosted Flakes?" asked Ellie.

"Hmm, Froot Loops!" exclaimed Lita.

"Okay—"

"No, Lucky Charms!"

"Alright then—"

"No! Frosted Flakes! No! Lucky Charms! Wait, no! Froot Loops!" Lita pointed her index finger at each one as she changed her mind over and over again.

Ellie smiled. "Why don't you stay here and decide while I get the bread, alright?" she asked.

Lita nodded. "Okay!"

Ellie and Lita were out doing the grocery shop for the week, and Lita was having trouble deciding which brand of cereal to buy. Ellie walked away and headed further down the aisle to search for the things she needed, leaving Lita by the shopping cart while she made her decision. Lita was so caught up going back and forth between the types of cereals, she didn't notice the lady that had come up behind her.

"Hi there, sweetheart" said the lady. She had long blond hair tied up in a ponytail.

Lita was a bit startled but looked at the lady and gave her a quick smile. "Hello!" she replied, then went back to staring at the cereals.

"Are you okay all by yourself?" the lady asked.

"Yep," said Lita, not taking her eyes off the boxes in front of her.

"Are you lost?"

"Nope!"

"Well, where is your mommy?" the lady asked.

"My mommy's over there," said Lita as she pointed in Ellie's direction.

The lady took in the sight of Ellie and frowned.

"Well, that can't be your mommy", she said. "She doesn't look like you. Are you sure you're okay, darling?" she asked as she placed a hand on Lita's arm.

Lita stopped to look at her, her confusion showing on her face.

"Do you need any help? Do you want me to call your real mommy?" the lady asked.

"No, that's my real mommy!" said Lita, her voice escalating.

"But she just doesn't look like you, darling. Do you know where you real mommy is?"

"That's my real mommy!" Lita's voice quavered.

"I don't think she is honey, if she was, she would look like you. Where is your real mommy?"

"That's my mommy!" Lita was on the verge of tears now.

"Darling–"

"THAT'S MY REAL MOMMY!" Lita screamed.

The commotion caught Ellie's attention, who dropped the package of bread she was holding and started running toward Lita.

"THAT'S MY REAL MOMMY!" Lita screamed again and again.

"Hey hey, what's wrong, what's going on?" said Ellie as she approached Lita.

Lita threw herself in Ellie's arms the moment Ellie got to her.

"She says - you're not - my real mom!" said Lita in between sobs.

"What!?" Ellie gave the lady the dirtiest look she could muster as she patted Lita on the back, trying to comfort her.

The blond woman looked clustered and apologetic.

"How _dare _you say something like that to her!?" Ellie asked the woman.

"Well I- I'm sorry, you just don't look alike, I'm trying to watch out here for the little one."

"So what, you think I _kidnapped her_?" asked Ellie, incredulous.

"I was just making sure, is all" said the woman.

"Yeah well I will have you know today families come in all shapes and sizes, and what you have done is _incredibly_ rude," said Ellie. "We may not look the same, but guess what, love makes a family, not blood! I think now's a good time for you to turn around and leave us the hell alone."

The woman raised her hands in the air in an apologetic manner but turned around and walked away.

Ellie turned her attention to Lita, who had been sobbing tirelessly the whole time.

"Aw baby, it's okay, it's okay," she said as she caressed Lita's face. "That lady didn't know what she was talking about, okay? Of course I'm your mommy, and I love you so very much, alright?"

Lita continued sobbing hard.

"Shh baby, it's okay, I'm here, it's okay," Ellie tried comforting her daughter.

Lita muttered something ineligible.

"What was that, baby?"

"I – I don't want - another mommy" Lita managed to get out.

"What do you mean?" asked Ellie. "I'm not going anywhere."

"You're not - my real mommy yet!" sobbed Lita. "What if they make me -go away?"

Ellie was lost for words.

"What if my birth mom - comes again?" she asked, genuine fear in her eyes.

Deep inside, Ellie's heart broke. She knew that until the .26 hearing happened, permanent adoption was still very much in the air for all three kids. She had been hoping the kids wouldn't be worried about this, but obviously she was wrong. She'd had no idea it was weighing so much in Lita's mind, but the scariest thing of all, is that she shared some of Lita's fear herself.

Ellie embraced her little one as she struggled to find the right words to say.

"That's not going to happen again baby, because this time you can tell the judge that you want to stay with us forever."

Lita stopped crying for a moment. "I can say that to the judge?"

"Of course! You can tell him how you feel," said Ellie.

"And he will listen to me?"

"Sure baby, he'll listen to you."

"And he won't make go anywhere?"

"No, he won't make you go anywhere you don't want to go."

"And I can stay here?"

"Yes baby, here with me and daddy and your brother and sister," said Ellie.

Lita thought about this for a few seconds. She took a deep breath, calming down considerably.

"Okay."

"Okay?" asked Ellie.

Lita nodded and reached out for a hug. Ellie held her for a few moments.

"Right," she said, breaking the hug. "Shall we buy all three boxes of cereal and then go get some ice cream?" she asked.

A smile returned to Lita's face. "Yes!"


	25. Chapter 25

"Honey, we just wanted to give you an update about the next step in the process," said Karen.

"Since your birth mom has not pursued reunification on her own, the process goes back to the initial adoption goal. Within the next couple of weeks the judge will set a new .26 hearing, where he will decide if your birth mom's parental rights will be terminated for you, Lita and Juan. If this happens, you three will become open for adoption. As case workers it is our responsibility to ensure all of you can find a permanent adoptive placement, and we will recommend Pete and Ellie to be that placement," said Sharon.

"We wanted to let you know because we know this has been a challenging idea in the past," added Karen, "specially for you, so we want to make sure you're ready for this."

Lizzy, Karen, Sharon, Pete and Ellie were in the Wagner's kitchen. Lizzy had stupidly thought this was another routine foster care check-in, and had not been prepared to hear all of this information, all at once. It was making her head spin.

"There is, of course, the possibility that a biological family member might step up," said Sharon.

"Or, if you are completely against this, you can submit another letter to the judge to express that and you can request to me or Sharon to be put into another placement," said Karen.

"You would have to decide if this is something you would want for just you or for your siblings as well," said Sharon.

"But given the situation, this hearing will be taking place soon, and after that if Pete and Ellie are cleared, the system will pursue permanent adoption for all three of you, unless circumstances change."

Lizzy was struggling to breathe. She felt like the world was closing in on her. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to feel. Karen and Sharon's voices faded out. Nothing made sense.

"Lizzy, honey, are you okay?"

Lizzy looked up to see everyone looking expectantly at her. It was all too much. She stood up and ran to her room.

"Lizzy!" Pete was getting out of the chair when Ellie stopped him.

"No, it's okay. Just give her some time. I'll go check on her in a little while if she doesn't come back. It's a lot to take in." said Ellie.

Upstairs, in her room, Lizzy was in full panic. This was it. This is what she had been waiting for: permanent adoption. But why was it so scary?

She thought about Juan and Lita. She knew what she wanted for them: to stay with Pete and Ellie, their rightful parents. But were Pete and Ellie her parents, too? What if they found out her darkest secrets and didn't want her anymore? What if they saw how happy they were just with Lita and Juan, and realized she was just extra baggage? Lizzy's mind came up with horrible scenarios while she struggled to breathe.

Then, she remembered. She opened her desk drawer in search of what she knew would help her make a decision. When she found it, she started reading.

_"…Lizzy once asked me why we did this, why we took them in. We couldn't give her an answer at the time. We did it because something was missing in our lives but we didn't know what it was. It was Juan, Lita and Lizzy. Over the past few months we have fallen in love with these kids and everything they have brought into our lives. We love Lita's stubbornness, Juan's kindness and Lizzy's determination to build a better life for herself and her siblings.  
When we started this journey, we thought we were going to help change children's lives for the better. What these past months have taught us is that it doesn't work that way at all. It's not their lives that have been changed for the better, but ours. We have learnt a lot in a very short time: we have learnt how to braid hair, how to kiss booboos, how to help with homework and how to cope with endless piles of laundry. But most importantly, we have learnt how to be parents, how to be their parents. We know we have made mistakes along the way, but every mistake has helped us grow. Every decision, every struggle, every challenge has been worth it just to see these kids thrive. We know we have even more challenges ahead of us, but we want to face them to the best of our abilities. We will never be perfect, but we want to continue to try to be the perfect parents to them. Juan, Lita, Lizzy: we have a cosmic connection with you. Whatever happens today, know that you have made us into better people and nothing will make us stop loving you. Please know that even if we don't get to be with you as you grow up, you will always feel like our children. We will always be here for you. We will always love you."_

Lizzy wiped tears from her face and took a deep breath.

She knew what she had to do.

Moments later, Lizzy emerged in the kitchen, where the Wagners and her case workers were awaiting her.

"Karen, Sharon," she said. "Let's do the .26 hearing."


	26. Chapter 26

"Daddy, daddy! I found a new game we can play," said an over-excited 7-year old.

Pete's attention shifted from the TV to his youngest daughter.

"It's not another Candy Land game, is it baby?" he asked.

"No," said Lita as she climbed on his lap and took out the iPad. Both were on the couch in the living room.

"Okay…" said Pete, adjusting himself to accommodate his little girl. "What new game is it then?"

"Candy Crush!" exclaimed Lita.

Pete dropped his head back. "Sweetheart…" he groaned, rolling his eyes. "That's a game just like Candy Land!"

"No, it isn't, look, they have cartoons!"

"Lita, the other game had cartoons as well!"

"But these ones are funny! Look!" Lita said. She opened the app on the device and showed Pete the home screen. "See? This is Tiffi. I like her because she has a bow on her head."

"Okay honey…" Pete sighed. As much as he hated to, he muted the TV so he could concentrate on the game with Lita. "Show me how it works."

"It's really easy, you just have to move the candies that flash on the screen." She tapped on the screen to open a level and demonstrate what she meant. "See? I swipped these two and they exploded. That's how I get points."

"I think you mean _swapped_ honey_,"_ said Pete.

Lita turned her head around to look at Pete, a frown on her face. "I _swapped _then. C'mon your turn."

Pete couldn't help but notice she had already played 11 levels by herself. "How long have you been playing this game?"

"Just a few minutes. But I want to play with you."

"Alright, what should I do?" he asked. Having had more than enough experience with Candy Land, Pete already knew the mechanics of the game but wanted to let her explain regardless.

"Just move the flashing ones around and form a line. Like this," on the screen, she swapped two pieces of candy to form a line of three. These exploded and triggered a chain reaction which increased the score. "Now you try!"

Pete did as he was told until he cleared the level. He had to admit this game was different from Candy Land; at least it had better graphics and music.

"Next level!" exclaimed Lita. She tapped on the screen and selected a new level. "With this one you have to get three cherries to drop to the bottom," she said.

Pete frowned. "Okay…" he said, then set about swapping pieces of candy around the screen. At one point, one full line of sweets joined together to form a super candy. Lita got excited.

"A color bomb! Swipe it, swipe it with that one!" she squealed.

"Do you mean _swap_, honey?"

"Yes!" exclaimed Lita. "Just move it there!"

Pete did so and lightning rays from the color bomb struck the other candies. What seemed like hundreds of sweets exploded, words like 'Tasty' and 'Sweet' flashed on the screen. Not long after, Pete created another color bomb, which made Lita very excited.

"Another bomb! Swap it!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, can't swap it just yet, it's not flashing." Pete explained.

He continued swapping candies around. Two moves later, the color bomb began to flash.

"It's flashing now, it's flashing!" said Lita.

Pete moved the color bomb and candies everywhere exploded. It happened so fast, he didn't even have to touch the screen anymore. Soon enough, the words 'Sugar Rush' flashed on the screen and sweets continued exploding.

"Look it's the fishies!" said Lita.

Pete saw how gummy fishes came on the screen and devoured candy all around. The level had been cleared.

"Next level!" Lita shouted excitedly, a big smile on her face.

As dull as Pete knew the next level would be, he wouldn't trade moments like this one for the world.


	27. Chapter 27

"Anybody home?"

The sound of barking resonated around the home as Meatball came to greet the new visitor. A few seconds later, two heads popped out into view, one from behind the kitchen and one from up the stairs.

"Grandma Sandy!" Lita and Juan exclaimed at the same time. Lita started running down the stairs at the same time that Juan started running from the kitchen, both desperate to hug their grandmother.

"Aw, hello kiddos", said Sandy as she embraced both of them. "How have my munchkins been?"

"Good!" said the two kids in unison. They started jumping and up and down from joy as they tried to catch their grandma up to speed with what they had been up to recently.

"I got a gold star from doing all my homework!" exclaimed Lita.

"I got 86% in my last maths test!" said Juan.

"I got 100% in my spelling test!"

"I got a new videogame!"

"I got a new barbie!"

Sandy had a big smile on her face as she turned her head from one kid to the other, trying to keep up with their latest achievements. Out of the corner of her eye she saw someone standing on the hallway; she raised her head.

Lizzy had come down from her room and stood in the hallway watching the whole thing, a smile on her face too.

"And how's my favorite young lady doing?" asked Sandy, extending her arms to Lizzy.

"Hi Grandma," said Lizzy, reaching for the hug.

"Mom?" Pete's voice came from the end of the hallway. "What are you doing here?"

"Well can't a grandma visit her grandbabies on a Sunday?" she responded.

Pete came up to her and hugged her. "Well, yeah, but we didn't know you were coming!"

"And I suppose you have some big plans I'm interrupting…?" asked Sandy.

"Well, no, but—"

"Then this is perfect, because I plan on taking these kids out for some ice cream."

Before Pete could say anything, Juan and Lita screamed in excitement and stared jumping up and down again.

The commotion brought Ellie to the scene, who had been out back doing some gardening.

"What's with all the screaming? Oh, Sandy!" she said. "I didn't know you were coming."

"I was just telling my boy Pete here that I'm taking these kids out for ice cream."

"I'm going to put on my shoes!" shouted Lita, who shot running up the stairs.

"Me too!" said Juan, following closely.

Lizzy looked at the Wagners and raised her eyebrows, silently asking them if this was okay.

"Oh, well, uhm, sure, that's great, thank you Sandy," said Ellie, feeling a bit clustered.

"Okay Mom, but don't take them to Six flags okay? And next time give us a bit more warning, we were planning on having dinner at 7 tonight."

"Oh, don't you worry about that, I'll get these babies back in plenty of time," said Sandy.

Pete and Ellie exchanged a look that told them Sandy was going to do anything but.

The grandmother turned to Lizzy. "Right sweetheart, I assume you're coming barefoot since you haven't rushed off to put some shoes on?"

Lizzy smiled. "Fine, let me get changed."

...

An hour later, Grandma Sandy and Lizzy sat on a park bench holding an ice cream cone each and watching the younger kids play on the swings. They watched as Lita got on a swing and Juan went behind her, ready to push her.

"Peanut!" shouted Sandy. "Be careful with your sister! You don't want her flying off!"

Juan looked up from the swings and let out a laugh, but immediately nodded.

Next to her, Lizzy licked her ice cream and smiled.

"So, kid, tell me. How are you?" asked Sandy.

"I'm okay," said Lizzy.

"No, how are you, _really_."

Lizzy turned to look at Sandy. "I'm fine," she said with a smile on her face.

Grandma Sandy gave her a look.

"What?" asked Lizzy, still smiling. "I'm fine!"

Sandy sighed. "Y'know, I haven't told you this but grew up a lot like you, kid. I know all about masking the real emotions behind a smile."

"Grandma Sandy," said Lizzy, "Things are good! Juan and Lita are great, they're healthy, they're doing really well in school—"

"I didn't ask about Juan or Lita," said Sandy, cutting her off. "I asked about _you."_

"Well, I'm good too!" said Lizzy. "I'm making good grades in school, my soccer team haven't lost a match yet..."

"Don't give me that bullshit, kiddo," said Sandy. She turned to look at her. "You can talk to me, you know that. Please don't disrespect me like this."

Lizzy fell quiet.

Sandy took a bite out of her ice cream. "I heard you agreed to the .26 hearing," she continued. "What do you think about that?"

"What do you mean?" asked Lizzy.

"You think you're ready to start calling Pete and Ellie 'mom' and 'dad'?" asked Sandy. "Or did you only agree for those two," she said, nodding her head in the direction of Juan and Lita.

Lizzy licked her ice cream but didn't respond.

Sandy let the silence sit in as she consumed her ice cream.

After a few minutes of watching Juan and Lita play on the swings, Sandy asked again. "Well?"

Lizzy took a deep breath. "I know it's what's best for them."

"Oh yeah," said Sandy. "That goes without saying. But do you believe this is what's best for you, too?"

Lizzy shrugged her shoulders and took a bite out of her ice cream.

"Still got those walls up, huh? Look, if there's anything years of past abuse have taught me is that dealing with it on your own is a very dark and lonely road," said Sandy.

Lizzy ate her ice cream, feeling more uncomfortable by the second.

"You feelin' scared?" asked Sandy.

A few seconds passed before Lizzy nodded.

"Well, that makes sense. That hearing ain't no easy thing to do. Watching your birth mother have her parental rights be terminated… It's tough. I know you love her."

Lizzy looked away.

"But that's not all that's troubling you, is it?"

Lizzy avoided Grandma Sandy's gaze. She continued eating her ice cream. When she finished the cream, she threw the cone in the trashcan next to the bench.

"Kid. Look at me," said Sandy. When Lizzy refused to turn her head, Sandy took her shoulders and turned her around, spilling a bit of her own ice cream onto Lizzy's shoulder.

"You know I got your back forever, with or without a piece of paper telling me that you're my family. You know that, right?"

Lizzy's eyes were wide open as she nodded.

"Well, you gotta trust that my Petey and Ellie have your back, too."

Lizzy dropped her gaze but did not respond.

Sandy let go of her and took a bite out of her ice cream. "I know what you're thinking. Once they find out all about your past and what you were forced to do to survive, they won't love you anymore. They'll reject you."

This caught Lizzy's attention.

"Yeah, I know that feeling. I struggle with that feeling daily. But it's wrong," said Sandy, turning to watch Juan and Lita again.

A few seconds passed as Lizzy struggled with herself.

"How do you know?" she asked.

"'Cause I also thought if I opened up to my family, they'd turn me away. But they didn't," said Sandy. "Whatever you think they can't handle, trust me, they can."

Lizzy frowned. "Did they ask you to say that?"

Sandy laughed. "Kid, it don't take a genius to figure out how much they want you to let them in."

"I…" Lizzy sighed. "I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Look, Lizzy, I'm no saint," said the grandmother. "I can't say I set the best example. There're things I still keep to myself 'cause I'm too afraid to be judged for them. But let me tell you, kiddo; they eat me up a little more every day. If there's one piece of advice this old fart can give you is this: don't become like me."

As Grandma Sandy went back to eating her ice cream, Lizzy bit her lower lip.

She had a lot of thinking to do.


	28. Chapter 28

"Juan!" shouted Pete. "Juan, buddy! Where are you? Come down right now!"

Above him, footsteps shuffled across the top floor in the direction of the stairs.

"Yeah?" said Juan, popping his head into view from the staircase.

"Buddy, what's this? Why is this box unticked?" asked Pete, pointing to the family chores board.

Juan's eyes widened. "Oops."

Beside Pete, Meatball whined.

It was late evening and Pete had gone downstairs to get a snack when he had walked past the chore board. He'd realized the box labelled 'Feed Meatball' -one of Juan's chores- was unticked. Directly beneath the board, Meatball's food was empty. He was not about to let Juan get away with this.

"Buddy I can't believe you didn't do this earlier; you know we always feed Meatball at five!" said Pete.

"Sorry! I forgot!" said Juan, an apologetic look on his face.

"Look at Meatball, poor guy's been waiting for his food for two hours! What's that about?" said Pete.

"I'm sorry Meatball," said Juan as he scrambled around the kitchen for the dog food. The dog whined again.

Juan opened one of the storage cupboards in the aisle and pulled out a massive bag of dog food. He opened it and took out a pouring scoop. Meatball sat down next to his bowl and licked his mouth, drool dripping on the floor. Juan ran back to get Meatball's food bowl and poured out a scoop full of dog food into the bowl.

"Juan, you know how important this is, we can't forget to feed Meatball!" said Pete.

"I'm so sorry Meatball, here you go" said Juan as he put the food down for Meatball to eat.

Immediately the dog pounced on the food, eating away.

"How come you forgot, bud?" asked Pete.

Juan looked up at him, the apology written all over his face.

"Sorry Dad," he said. "I… uhm… it won't happen again" he lowered his head, staring at the floor.

"You bet this won't happen again, I'm giving this chore back to Lita so she can do it with Mom next time" said Pete.

"Noo please, I want to keep doing it," begged Juan, "please I promise I won't forget again! It's just that…" said Juan.

"It's just that what, buddy?" asked Pete.

"Minecraft released an update today and there's tons of cool new features and I really wanted to try them out" said Juan, his head lowered.

"Wait, did they finally release the aquatic update?" asked Pete, suddenly interested in the conversation.

Juan looked up at him and nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! And there're like 6 ocean biomes and so many new items!"

"Including the trident?" asked Pete

"Including the trident! Although you can't mine it, you have to steal it from drowned mobs," said Juan.

"And did they add the heart of the sea for conduit powers?" asked Pete.

Juan smirked. "Oh yeah," he said, nodding.

"No way!" exclaimed Pete. "Why didn't you call me? You know I've been waiting for that update as well!"

Juan bit his lower bit as he shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry…. I forgot!"

Pete shook his head, suddenly remembering the matter at hand. He looked down at Meatball, who had finished eating and was now licking his mouth.

"Okay well… you're forgiven this one time, but if you forget again, that's it, I'm giving this chore back to Lita, alright? Can't be forgetting to feed our good boy here," he said as he patted Meatball on the head.

Juan smiled. He crouched down to Meatball's level and took his face in his hands.

"Sorry buddy, you're a good boy, I promise I won't forget again, even if there's another update from Minecraft," said Juan.

"Alright well speaking about that, c'mon you gotta show me these features, let's go" said Pete.

Juan stood up. "Dad, you really gotta see the deep ocean biome, it's great, and if you craft a turtle helmet it gives you underwater breathing!" he said as he walked up the stairs.

"You can breathe underwater too?!" asked Pete, trailing behind him.

Downstairs, Meatball went over to his dog bed and lay down, satisfied for the rest of the day.


	29. Chapter 29

**Trigger warning: Self-harm.**  
**Inspiration credit: Xxxx4evaSummerxxxx**

"What the…?"

Ellie was confused to see light coming in from the crack underneath her bedroom door. She looked at the alarm clock on her bedside table, it was flashing 2:26 AM. She looked at the bed and saw a sleeping Pete. She frowned.

Ellie had woken up in the middle of the night to use her bathroom when, on the way back, had noticed light coming in from the hallway.

Something wasn't right -usually the kids were not awake at this time.

She opened her bedroom door and peered outside. In the hallway, one of the upstairs bathrooms doors was ajar and light was coming from the inside. She figured it was probably one of the kids using the toilet and was about to turn back when something made her stop.

It sounded like a sob.

It was soft and quiet, but it definitely sounded like a sob.

Frowning, she decided to check it out. As she made her way to the bathroom, the sobs grew louder. Someone was crying inside.

Ellie pushed the door open.

Lizzy sat in the middle of the floor holding a razor blade in her right hand. There were scattered pieces of toilet paper smeared with blood all around her. Her eyes were closed as she sobbed quietly to herself.

Ellie needed a moment to take everything in. She took a deep breath.

"Lizzy?" she asked tentatively.

Lizzy opened her eyes and gasped in surprise, a look of horror on her face. She dropped the razor blade and her hands came up to her face, covering it.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she started saying. Her crying became loud, her body shook with each sob.

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay honey. I'm here. It's okay." Ellie's voice quivered. She came up to Lizzy and sat next to her on the floor. Lizzy had curled herself up onto a ball and kept repeating the words 'I'm sorry' as she cried into her hands. Ellie noticed her fingers were blood-stained.

"Shhh, it's okay, it's okay, you're safe" she said as she rubbed Lizzy's back. "You have nothing to apologize for, alright? I'm here, and I love you. You're okay."

These words made Lizzy cry harder as she retreated further into herself.

A million thoughts raced through Ellie's mind, but she tried her best to remain calm.

"You're okay honey, you're not in trouble, I love you, and I'm here for you, alright?"

Ellie continued rubbing Lizzy's back as she waited for her to calm down. After some time, Lizzy's sobs quietened.

Slowly, the teenager let her guard down and dropped her hands from her face. She opened her eyes but kept her head lowered.

"Do you want a wipe for your hands, honey?" asked Ellie.

Lizzy did not respond.

"Shall we get you cleaned up?" Ellie tried again.

Lizzy wouldn't meet her gaze.

"Can you show me where you cut?" asked Ellie.

Lizzy did not move.

"Is it deep? Do we need to go to the ER?" she tried again, growing increasingly worried.

"Lizzy –" Ellie was about to ask the question again when she saw her daughter slowly lowering her knees.

On the inside of the left thigh, Ellie could see fresh cuts on the skin. She took a deep breath.

"Well these don't look too deep, thankfully. I think some at-home care will be enough."

She stood up and went to the medicine cabinet, where there was a first aid kit. She opened that and took out cotton balls, rubbing alcohol, gauze and tape.

"You know, that's a really smart place to cut, it's very easy to hide," said Ellie.

For the first time, Lizzy looked up in surprise.

"No need to wear long sleeves, watches or bracelets to hide the cuts," continued Ellie, "specially during this warm weather. It would give you away. So that was smart," said Ellie as she crouched down to Lizzy's level.

Her eldest daughter frowned, clearly confused at Ellie's reaction.

"What? You don't think I struggled with self-harm too?" said Ellie.

"Really?" asked Lizzy.

"Sure," said Ellie. She poured alcohol on a cotton ball. "When I was around your age, maybe a little bit younger," as she talked, Ellie's hands moved to the cuts on Lizzy's thigh. She cleaned them softly and methodically. "I just kept fighting with my sisters, and I felt like my mom never took my side. I was convinced I was a failure to her…" Ellie moved on to cover the skin with the gauze. "I probably did it for shitty reasons, but it's really easy to fall into it. Sometimes it's the only thing you feel you have control over."

Lizzy's gaze dropped to the floor; Ellie's words resonated strongly with her.

Ellie finished tapping the gauze in place. "Okay, all done. Better, yeah?"

Lizzy had been so focused on Ellie's story she had hardly noticed her cleaning her cuts. She looked down at her thigh. "Thank you."

Ellie sighed. "Lizzy… What triggered this?"

Lizzy looked away, tears rapidly forming in her eyes again. She shrugged. "Just… me being stupid."

Ellie gave her a look. "Honey, I know how this works, you don't have to hide it from me."

Lizzy was silent for a while. Ellie stayed quiet to allow her time to process things.

"I… Uhm.." started Lizzy, tears rapidly falling from her eyes. "I failed a class," she said, her voice breaking.

Ellie knitted her eyebrows. "Were you… were you worried about telling us? Is that what made you cut?"

Lizzy shrugged her shoulders but did not look up from the floor.

"Were you worried we would… punish you?" asked Ellie, trying to understand the whole thing.

Lizzy shrugged her shoulders again. Her legs came up to her chest and she hugged them, making herself small again.

"Did you think we would… think badly of you or something?" asked Ellie.

Lizzy buried her head in her knees.

"Honey what is it? What is it? You can tell me, it's okay, I'm not going anywhere," said Ellie as she stroked Lizzy's hair.

"I'm a failure," said Lizzy, her voice soft.

Ellie shook her head. "What? No, honey… you… you're not a failure, I promise."

"I am," said Lizzy. It was clear she was relieving past trauma, but Ellie didn't know what exactly.

"No honey, you're smart, and brave, and caring, you're strong and kind… you're many things but a failure is not one of them," said Ellie. "Does this… does this have to do with something that happened in the past, maybe?" she asked, tentatively.

After a few seconds, Lizzy nodded.

"Honey… I wasn't there, but I _know_ that you weren't a failure then, either. Okay?" said Ellie.

Lizzy cried quietly for the next few minutes. Ellie continued stroking her hair. After a while, Lizzy lifted her head and looked at Ellie. She took a deep breath.

"I think I was about 8 when Mom started using crack," she started. "She'd used things before, but crack was different. It's like suddenly, we didn't matter to her anymore." Lizzy stopped to wipe tears from her face. "Anyway, after a while, she started disappearing for days at time, I guess to get more. I was too scared to tell anybody, because I had Juan and I didn't want him taken from me. So I looked after him as best as I could. I would get up early, dress us, take us to school, pick him up, feed us and so on. But then one time she didn't come back and the food ran out and I didn't know what to do. Juan started crying all the time. I was really scared." Lizzy's voice broke here as she struggled to keep going. "I started only eating half my school lunch so I could bring the other half home for Juan and he could have it for dinner," Lizzy sighed. "But that made me very hungry and tired all the time. I could barely concentrate in school. That week we had a test in class and I did really badly on it. All the other kids started teasing me, and I remember the teacher looking at me like I was worthless. And that's how I felt: worthless." Lizzy shrugged her shoulders. "Because I couldn't make Mom stay with us, because I couldn't feed Juan properly, because I wasn't smart enough to pass the stupid test." Lizzy covered her face with her hands and started crying again.

Tears were falling from Ellie's eyes, too. She was trying to remain strong, but it was hard.

"Shh…. It's okay, honey, you're safe now," said Ellie.

Lizzy wiped her face again. "I try really heard in school because I want to prove that teacher wrong," she continued, "but anytime I fail something I just get reminded of that time when Mom left and I failed a test. I guess that's my trigger. It reminds me of what a failure I am. Because at the end of the day, I can't change my life, no matter how many new clothes I own or how many shiny new things I have. I can't change the fact that Mom left us, that she chose drugs over us. That I couldn't stop Juan from crying. That Lita grew up without a mother figure. That I can't keep them safe. And that despite all my efforts, Mom still chose drugs over us, _again_."

At the last sentence, Lizzy voice broke off and she started heavily sobbing.

Ellie's heart broke into a million pieces. "Oh sweetheart, come here," she said as she took Lizzy in her arms.

Lizzy let herself be hugged. She buried her head in Ellie's chest and cried, hard.

The two of them stayed like that until Lizzy calmed down again.

"Listen to me," said Ellie, taking Lizzy's face in her hands. "You are not a failure, and you have never been a failure. What happened in the past -that was not your fault. Your birth mother cares about you, about all of you, and I know she loves you a lot. But it can be difficult to prioritise the right things when you're using. What you did for your brother back then, that was amazing. You should be very proud of yourself for putting your brother before school. But it's absolutely not your fault any of that happened and it doesn't make you a failure, you hear me?"

Lizzy stayed silent for a long time. Ellie hugged her again.

When they pulled away, Lizzy dropped her gaze to the floor. "I… understand if you want to return me now," she said, her voice a mere whisper. "I wouldn't want damaged goods either."

Ellie's eyes widened.

"Honey, what are you saying? You're not damaged goods. We will never put you back in the system. We love you, okay? We love you with all your flaws, all your insecurities and your past. You're perfect to us, honey. Is this why you didn't share anything about it before? Because you're scared that we won't want you?"

Lizzy nodded.

"Look at me," said Ellie, taking Lizzy's face in her hands again. "There is nothing you can do that will make us not want you. Understand? Nothing. You're stuck with us, honey. For better or for worse, this is it. You hear me? We love you. We will always love you, no matter what."

Lizzy closed her eyes as tears started falling again. This was all too much, she wasn't prepared to be met with such acceptance. It was so far removed from what she usually experienced, it was confusing.

Ellie hugged her once more, allowing her to have the time she needed to take everything in.

She didn't know if Lizzy would believe her, but she was incredibly glad to finally be let in.


	30. Chapter 30

"So uhm.. you alright, sweetie?" asked Pete.

"Yeah?" said Lizzy.

"You uhm, got everything for school?"

"Uh, yeah?"

"Got your school lunch?"

Lizzy frowned. She turned her head to look at Pete. "Yeah!"

"Alright, alright, just making sure," said Pete.

Father and Daughter were on Pete's truck, on the way to Lizzy's high school. He had insisted on driving her this morning.

"Not feeling too tired?" he asked.

Lizzy shot him a puzzling look again. "I'm alright," she said.

"Are you sure?" Pete insisted.

"Yes! What's going on?" she asked. "Wait, where are we going?"

She noticed Pete had taken a wrong turn and they were heading a different way.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

Pete drove through an unknown residential road for a while. When he found an empty spot near a tree, he parked the car and killed the engine. Lizzy was very confused.

Pete took a deep breath.

"Lizzy, you know I'm here for you, right?"

Lizzy scouted her surroundings trying to make sense of where they were. "What are we doing here?" she asked.

"If you ever need to get out the house, all you need to do is tell me," said Pete.

"Where's the school?" Lizzy asked.

"We can go out, go to the building site, break some things, get ice cream or something…" he continued.

"Where are we?"

"We can even just go out for a ride…"

"Where's the main road?" asked Lizzy, looking all around her.

"Lizzy—"

"Is this a new shortcut?"

"Lizzy—"

"I'm going to be late!"

"Lizzy!" Pete begged.

"What!?" she snapped.

Pete looked straight at her. "Your mom told me about last night," he sighed.

Lizzy froze. Her gaze dropped. Silence filled the car for a few of seconds.

"You know what?" said Lizzy, unbuckling her seat belt, "I think I know where we are. I'll just walk the rest of the way."

"Lizzy—"

She tried to open the car doors, but they were locked.

"Are you serious right now?" she asked Pete.

"Lizzy wait –"

"Let me out!" she cried.

"Hey!" shouted Pete. "If you think you can avoid having this conversation with me, you're wrong, sweetheart. I'm gonna keep pestering you until we talk about it, whether that's right now, or after school, or before school, or at the weekends. Wanna take your pick or you wanna do it now?"

Lizzy sighed.

"Lizzy, I know what you're thinking," continued Pete, "but you can't keep shutting us out, sweetie. You're stuck with us, and we're always gonna be here for you."

The teenager closed her eyes for a moment. She'd had a rough night and this was becoming more than she could handle at the moment.

"Being pissed and breaking shit, that's one thing. But harming yourself, that's completely different."

Lizzy rolled her eyes. "I don't need you to lecture me right now, okay?" she said.

"No, I'm not about to lecture you," said Pete. He took another deep breath. "Look, I'm not saying harming yourself is something that you should be ashamed about... or.. or the worst coping strategy in the world -I mean at the end of the day is _a_ coping strategy and we all need one of those."

Lizzy turned her head to look at him again, a frown on her face.

"I'm just saying… if you're doing it because you think that you're damaged goods… or because you think at any point we're gonna stop loving you, you're wrong."

Lizzy didn't know what to say. After a moment, she felt tears threatening to come out. She looked out the car window.

"You know, when I grew up, I also thought I was damaged goods," said Pete. "Everyone around my neighborhood thought so too. I felt like my past marked me out and destined me for trouble. I acted up a lot. Got in fights, broke shit, caused a lot of damage," he let out a sigh. "It took 13 stitches in my head and my mom crying her eyes out in the hospital for me to realize how wrong that was. Your past doesn't predestine you for anything. You're the one that chooses if and how to move forward."

Lizzy closed her eyes and dropped her head.

"Sweetheart," said Pete. "I just want you to know that we're going to be here, helping you to move forward, no matter what. You're great and we love you. I wouldn't want you to keep hurting yourself because you think otherwise."

A few minutes passed in silence while Lizzy tried to keep herself together.

"And I want you to know that if at any point you feel like you need to get out, or just need to blow off some steam, you just tell me, we get on the car and we go to the building site to break shit, how does that sound, huh?" he fake-punched her in the arm.

Lizzy cracked a small smile.

"Even at three in the morning?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Yes! Wait, 3AM?" he asked.

Lizzy's smile grew wider.

"Well honey, you'll have to drag me out of bed, but you know what? Sure. Why not," he said.

The teenager laughed.

"Come here," said Pete, pulling Lizzy into a hug.

Lizzy lingered there for a few seconds.

When they pulled away, she looked up at him and smiled.

Pete winked at her. "C'mon, let's get you to school before you're late," he said.


	31. Chapter 31

"Lizzy, do you know what you're having, sweetheart?" asked Ellie.

"I think I'll stick with the classic cheeseburger," she said as she handed the menu to the waitress.

"Lita, honey, chicken nuggets or nachos?" asked Ellie.

"Nachos!" screamed the 7-year-old. As Ellie picked up her menu and handed it to the waitress, Lita turned to Pete and leaned in. "I like them because they taste like chips," she whispered.

Her father let out a laugh.

"and Juan?" asked Ellie.

"Uhm, I'll have the chicken nuggets," he said.

The waitress scribbled the orders down, took the last remaining menus and left.

The Wagners and their kids were out for dinner. For Juan, Lita, Pete and Ellie, it was a sort of celebration. For Lizzy, it was a different story.

"Daddy, isn't my court bear so cute?" asked Lita for the hundredth time.

"But mine's cooler, right dad?" chimed in Juan.

Pete shot a look at Ellie. The two kids had had smiles in their faces all day, and had been more excited than usual to get their new court bears.

"Sweetie, your court bear is very cute, and Juan yours is very cool, but they're _both _equally awesome, alright?" said Pete.

"Well I think mine's cooler because it has an eye patch!" remarked Juan.

"Well I don't care because mine is purple!" said Lita.

The two kids engaged in a friendly debate.

Ellie looked over at Pete and smiled. Her heart filled with joy watching the younger kids be so happy. Lizzy, though, was the exception. The teenager had hardly uttered a word all day.

As Ellie looked over to her right, where Lizzy sat, she noticed the teen was playing with the straw in her drink.

Ellie quietly nudged her on the elbow.

"You alright?" she asked.

Lizzy immediately put on a smile. "Yup! All good, just really hungry, that's all."

"Are you sure?" Ellie prodded.

"Yeah!" said Lizzy. "I guess it's been a while since I had a cheeseburger, huh?" she let out what sounded like a fake laugh.

Ellie pursed her lips but didn't prod any further.

The .26 hearing had gone as smooth as they could have possibly asked for. They had been in and out of the court building in under an hour. Total court time for their case had been something like 25 minutes. Apparently, things went faster when a certain birth mother didn't show up for court.

"So does your cheeseburger come with loaded fries?" asked Ellie. It was a stupid question, but she was eager to continue the conversation with Lizzy.

"No, just regular fries. I don't mind though. What did you order again?" asked Lizzy.

"I got the chicken fillet with salad," said Ellie. She was about to ask a follow up question when she was interrupted by Lita.

"Mommy, can we go to Six Flags this weekend?" asked the 7-year-old.

"Please, please!" said Juan. "It would be so much fun!"

"Well, I, uh, what did your father say?" replied Ellie, shooting daggers at Pete for putting her in such uncomfortable spot.

Pete shrugged his shoulders as he gave her an apologetic look.

"He said to check with you first," said Juan.

Pete mouthed the word 'sorry'. Ellie resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"I suppose a trip to Six Flags wouldn't hurt, huh?" she said.

"YAY!" screamed Juan and Lita in unison. A huge smile crept up on Pete's face.

"And we can celebrate big time while we're there, hey?" Pete winked at Juan.

Ellie's eyes widened. She shot an angry look at Pete as she kicked him underneath the table.

"Ouch!" Pete complained. He looked over at Ellie, who immediately signalled over to Lizzy. The teenager had picked up her phone and had disconnected from the conversation.

"Oh, uhm, Lizzy, sweetheart, what do you think about Six Flags? Fun yeah?" he asked.

Lizzy looked up.

"Huh? Yeah, sounds fun," she said, then went back to scrolling through her phone.

Pete was about to say something else when the waitress returned with everyone's food. Lita and Juan dived in, picking up a conversation about the first ride they would go on when they got to the amusement park.

Ellie turned to look at Lizzy. "You know what, why don't you invite your friends? We can give them a ride and you can do your thing when you get there."

"Yeah, and their tickets can be on us, too," offered Pete. This suggestion won him another under-the-table kick from Ellie.

"Well, what do you think, honey?" she asked.

"Oh... thanks but, I was kind of thinking of staying in this weekend, if that's okay."

Ellie looked at Pete and gave him a worried look.

As the judge ruled Pete and Ellie fit for adoption and stripped Carla off of her parental rights, Juan and Lita had cheered, not fully understanding what this meant. To them, this represented staying with Pete and Ellie forever, one step closer to becoming a forever family. But Lizzy had lowered her head and remained quiet. When they had tried to talk to her, she had given them a small smile and told them she was 'fine'. Despite all the thumbs ups and assurances that she was okay, it was obvious Lizzy was struggling with the whole .26 hearing and the ruling.

"Oh, sure, whatever you like, but the offer is there if you want it, okay?" said Ellie.

"Thanks," said Lizzy with a smile.

Pete and Ellie shared a look but kept quiet.

"Hey buddy, need any help opening that ketchup sachet?" asked Pete after seeing Juan struggle with it.

"Yes please," said Juan, handing him the sachet.

"And one strawberry milkshake for you," said the waitress, setting down a milkshake in front of Pete.

"Ooh daddy, can I have some of your milkshake please?" asked Lita.

"Sure honey, but everyone remember Daddy is lactose intolerant so nobody go to the bathroom after I go, alright?"

The kids laughed, even Lizzy cracked a genuine smile.

Ellie knew Lizzy had been hoping Carla would come to the hearing. She had been with her when Lizzy ran up to Karen and Sharon and asked if her mother was there yet. She had watched Lizzy run to the restroom when the caseworkers replied Carla was still in rehab. It had been painful to watch, for various reasons. It broke her heart that Lizzy had been let down by Carla again, but it was also painful to know Lizzy still thought of Carla as her only mom. As happy as Ellie was about the ruling of the .26 hearing, the whole thing was also conflicting. She figured this was how Lizzy was feeling, too. And who could blame her?

Ellie could only hope Lizzy knew both Pete and herself were there for her, and would be ready to listen to her whenever she decided to come to them about it, no matter when that was.


	32. Chapter 32

"Hey, can I talk to you guys about something?" said Lizzy, entering the room.

Pete and Ellie were in the living room watching TV. The younger kids were already in bed.

Ellie looked up at her. "Sure honey, what's up?" she asked as she muted the TV.

Pet put down the beer he was holding and sat up.

"I was just wondering…" Lizzy started to say but fell quiet, trying to find the right words to tell them what was on her mind.

"Is something bothering you, sweetie?" asked Ellie.

"Come sit down," suggested Pete.

Lizzy hesitated for a moment before sitting down on the ottoman next to the couch. "There's something I want to ask you," she tried again. She looked down at the floor and took a deep breath. "I heard my mom is clean again. She got out of rehab a few days ago and is doing a lot better."

At this, Ellie and Pet exchanged a quick glance, unsure if they liked where the conversation was headed. As much as the Wagners wanted Lizzy to have a good relationship with her birth mom, they were worried it might upset Lizzy or the younger kids like it had the last time. An added worry was how it could also affect their adoption court date, which was fast approaching.

"Anyway," continued Lizzy. "I was just wondering if I could meet with her. Just me and her, no Juan or Lita."

The Wagners fell silent for a while. They exchanged another look, trying to guess what the other was thinking.

"Well," started Ellie. "I, uhm…"

"I just want to see how she's doing," cut in Lizzy.

"Well," started Pete. "I mean, I'm glad, _we're _glad she's doing a lot better…"

"Yeah! But…We just don't think that—"

"—it might be a good idea to—"

"—meeting with her right now, so close to the court date…"

"—change of circumstances…"

Both parents struggled to form a coherent sentence that Lizzy could understand. She looked from one to the other as they tried to find the right words to say.

"Don't worry, I still want you to adopt me, guys," Lizzy assured them.

At this, Pete and Ellie looked at each other again. Up until this point, Lizzy's response towards the adoption had been mostly passive. Hearing her say she wanted to be adopted by them was almost a novelty.

A silent agreement passed between them.

"Okay," they said.

...

"_Hola mamá_," said Lizzy as she walked in through the door.

Carla greeted her at the other side and gave her a hug.

"_Hola mi princesa,_" she said.

Both embraced for a few seconds.

They had agreed to meet at a nearby McDonald's. Carla's caseworker, Sue, was accompanying her and sat at one of the back tables. After a lot of back and forth, Pete and Ellie had allowed Lizzy to get a ride from Kylie while they stayed at home with the younger kids.

"How are you doing?" asked Lizzy as they sat down in a booth.

"I am getting there," said Carla. "How are you doing? How are Lita and Juan?"

"Good," said Lizzy, nodding slowly.

"I wish you had brought them here today," said Carla.

"They're better off with Mom and Dad," said Lizzy, then looked up at Carla, realizing what she had just said. It had come so naturally.

Carla fell silent.

"Do you call them 'mom' and 'dad' too?" she asked.

Lizzy shrugged her shoulders. "Juan and Lita do. It's just easier to go along with it."

"I see," said Carla.

A few moments passed in uncomfortable silence.

"_Escucha mi amor_," Carla started saying. "I'm really sorry about… what happened last time. I couldn't, I just couldn't—"

Lizzy shook her head. "It's fine," she interrupted. "It… it's fine. Really." She took a deep breath. "I don't understand it. I will never understand it, because I never want to try drugs." This made Carla drop her gaze. "But… I can forgive you. I don't think I'm there yet, but I think I will get there, eventually." Lizzy took Carla's hands and looked at her. "Mamá, I wanted to thank you, for allowing me to fill out all those papers and file for reunification."

Carla frowned. "I don't understand, I let you down."

"I know," said Lizzy. "But… if we hadn't filled them out… or if you hadn't let _me_ fill them out, I never would have figured out that you're not ready to be a parent yet."

"_Ay mi amor_, but I am your mother. I've been your mother for 15 years."

Lizzy bit back her tongue. She knew only part of that was true. Carla had been her mother in papers, but in reality, Ellie had been more of a mom in the past year than Carla had in almost 16.

"I think," Lizzy continued, "that if I hadn't gone through that, some part of me would have always clung to the possibility of being reunited with you. I don't think I would have given Ellie and Pete the chance they deserved at being Juan and Lita's parents…" a few seconds passed before she added, "at being my parents."

Carla was silent.

"I want you to know that you'll always be my birth mother," continued Lizzy. "You'll always be my first mom. And I will forgive you for what you did, just like I forgave you all those other times. But now, I'm glad you allowed me to realize that we could never be a family again."

Carla started tearing up.

"…because that forced me to start trusting Pete and Ellie, and I'm glad I did. I love you, mamá. I will always love you. But I love Pete and Ellie too. And Juan and Lita have never been happier, they adore Mom and Dad. It's great to see them so happy."

Carla wiped tears from her eyes. "I love you, _mi amor_, I will always love you too," she said, her voice breaking. "I'm so sorry I couldn't be the mother you needed me to be."

"It's okay, mamá," said Lizzy, smiling. "It really is. We're more than okay. We're great."


	33. Chapter 33

"Did you read your three chapters of the day?" asked Pete.

"Yup," said Juan.

"Did you brush your teeth?"

"Yup"

"Did you go potty?"

"Yup," repeated Juan.

"Alright, leave that book and get in the bed then, it's late," said Pete. He walked over to the bed and lifted the covers, waiting for Juan to slip in.

The young boy complied and got in the bed. Pete tucked him in, then knelt next to him.

"Had a good day, buddy?" asked Pete.

Juan nodded.

"Favorite part?"

Juan didn't have to think twice. "Mommy getting scared by a spider in the bathtub," he said with a smile.

Pete chuckled. "Yeah, that was very funny."

"She was jumping all over, like 'Ahh! A spider! Help!'" as he talked he moved his hands all over, imitating Ellie's reaction.

Pete laughed again. "Yeah, she was like 'It's a tarantula! Help!'" he said, joining Juan in imitating Ellie.

The two of them laughed hard.

"Are you boys making fun of me again?" said Ellie, popping her head through the door.

Juan gasped and covered his mouth with his hands, slightly embarrassed.

Ellie gave him a stern look, but he giggled, unable to resist laughing.

"Sorry honey, but it was really funny. It's been voted highlight of the day," said Pete.

"It's really not funny, it _was _a big spider, it could've been dangerous," she said.

Pete and Juan looked at each other knowingly.

"Honey, it really wasn't," said Pete.

"Fine, make fun of mommy, the only one worried about the welfare of this family," she said, raising her hands in defeat. "Juan, I expected better from you, sweetie." Her tone made it clear she was just playing.

"Sorry," he said, with a smile.

"Anyway, good night baby," she came over and kissed Juan on his forehead. "I hope you don't dream of spiders."

"Goodnight momma," he replied.

"I love you," said Ellie as she left the room.

"I love you too," said Juan.

"Alright pal, time for bed," he said as he leaned in and kissed his forehead as well. "Goodnight."

As he was getting ready to leave, Juan stopped him.

"Dad?"

"Yes?"

"How long now?" he asked.

"How long until what?"

Juan shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't get it, pal. How long until what?"

Juan hesitated. "You know."

"I'm sorry pal, I don't."

Juan dropped his gaze but remained quiet.

After a few seconds, Pete ruffled his hair. "Alright then, if you don't know either—"

"How long until the court date?" Juan blurted out.

This caught Pete by surprise.

"Uhm, just a few more weeks, buddy, why?" he frowned.

"How many?"

"Less than three, why?"

Juan shrugged his shoulders.

"Are you worrying about it?" Pete asked.

Juan shrugged his shoulders again.

"Well, don't worry too much, pal. Not long to go now," Pete reassured him.

"What if something goes wrong?" asked Juan.

"Nothing is gonna go wrong, buddy. All we have to do is show up for court, and then we'll officially be a family forever. But it doesn't mean we're not a family already, alright? That will just make it official."

"Do you promise?" asked Juan.

"I promise," said Pete.

Juan smiled. "Okay."

Pete returned the smile. "Alright buddy, good night. I love you," he said.

"I love you too."


	34. Chapter 34

"Get that word for me, sweetie," said Ellie.

"hmm, tho-ruff?" said Lita.

"Almost, try again."

"Tho-ro-ugh," said the little girl.

"Excellent, well done! Now the next one," said Ellie.

Lita lay back against Ellie's chest. "I don't wanna," she pouted.

"C'mon honey, we're almost there!"

Mother and daughter were on Ellie's bed, practicing reading. While Lita was a really good reader for her age, she sometimes lacked motivation, and this was one of those times.

"I want to play with my barbie dolls," Lita moaned.

"You can play with your dolls all you want after we finish, c'mon, what's the next word?"

Lita sighed but sat back up and looked at the book again.

"Bit-tween," she said.

"That's it, good girl. And what does it say after that?"

Lita sighed again. "I want to play with the dolls," she complained.

"Honey we're almost done, just a couple more pages," said Ellie

Lita had an idea. She turned back to look at Ellie. "If I finish this book will you buy me a new doll?" she asked.

"What? How are you saying that, you know you have to practice your reading and spelling for school!" said Ellie with a smile on her face.

Lita giggled, knowing Ellie was right.

"What if I read the next book very fastly?"

"It's _quickly," _Ellie corrected her.

"Will you buy a doll then?" she asked, innocently.

"No, I will not, you already have a lot of dolls! Come on missy, sit up and let's finish this book," she said as she tickled the little girl.

Lita giggled and eventually sat up again.

She looked at the book but still couldn't concentrate. She turned to look back at Ellie once more.

"Well when are you gonna buy me a new doll?" she asked.

"Sweetie, we _just_ got you a new barbie not that long ago!" exclaimed Ellie.

"But I want a small doll this time," said Lita.

"What do you mean small?" asked Ellie.

"A child barbie," said Lita.

"A child barbie?" asked Ellie with a frown on her face.

"Yes, I want a child for barbie and Ken, they're adopting," Lita explained.

Ellie was taken aback at this.

"They're adopting a child?" she asked. She wasn't sure what to say.

"Yes, they have been waiting forever. But that's how adoptions work. You first have to wait, and then you wait forever, and then you wait some more, and then you go to the courthouse, and then you go to the courthouse again, and then you wait, and then you keep going to the courthouse and waiting until one day you go to the courthouse and then you get adopted. Right mommy?" she looked up at Ellie.

Ellie's heart broke a little bit.

"Do you feel like you've been waiting forever to get adopted?" she asked.

"Uh huh," Lita nodded.

"Well, it's not long to go now, sweetheart," she said as she leaned in to kiss her.

"So that's why I need to buy them a child, so we can all get adopted at the same time," said the little girl.

Ellie chuckled. She took a deep breath.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do, but you gotta work hard at your reading and spelling, okay?"

A smile crept up on Lita's face.

"Okay!" she exclaimed, then went back to reading the book.

Ellie hugged her tightly and placed another kiss on the top of her head.

"That's my good girl," she said.


	35. Chapter 35

"Uhm… I've been kinda hanging out with… Charlie" said Lizzy, biting her lower lip in embarrassment.

"You what?!" asked Ellie.

Lizzy laughed and hid her face beneath her hands.

"As in hanging out, or as in 'hanging out'" said Ellie as she air quoted the last part.

Lizzy smiled in embarrassment.

"Stop! We're just friends," she said, "but we've recently started hanging out more and… I don't know, I guess he's… cute." She put a strand of hair behind her ear.

Both Ellie and Lizzy were on the couch in the living room. Lita and Juan were out with Pete, which meant Ellie and Lizzy had the house to themselves. Lizzy had been on her phone when Ellie had joined her and had started asking questions about her day, trying to use this moment to bond with her eldest daughter.

Lately, Lizzy had started to interact with her more and more, telling her little things about her day here and there, moments which Ellie could not get enough of. She had also noticed Lizzy was actively participating in family activities instead of being shut up in her room all day long. It was like she was finally letting her guard down.

"Oh my god!" Ellie shrieked. "This is so exciting!"

"It's not," Lizzy protested, trying to avoid turning this into a big deal. "We're just friends, okay?" she said, but immediately smiled.

"Wait… I know that smile, you like him!" exclaimed Ellie.

Lizzy covered her face with her hands in a bid to hide her smile.

"You like him!" cried Ellie. "You totally like him!" she reached out to Lizzy and before she could think twice, started tickling her.

Surprisingly, Lizzy started laughing.

"Stop it!" she said in between fits of laughter.

"I knew it! I knew it!" cried Ellie as she teased the teen.

"Stop!" Lizzy mock-protested. "No, stop! It's not funny!" she said as she tried to fight Ellie's hand away. She curled herself up into a ball, trying desperately to escape Ellie's teasing.

"Stop! Mom, stop!"

The tickling and teasing stopped as Ellie took in what Lizzy had just said.

Lizzy's eyes widened as she realized what she had let slip out. She sat up on the couch again.

"I mean… Ellie."

"No, it's okay honey," said Ellie, suddenly speaking very fast. "You can call me whatever you want. I mean, obviously don't be disrespectful or anything, but you can say Ellie or you can say Mom or you can say Elinor, honestly whatever you feel comfortable using is fine with me. I don't want to pressure you into calling me Mom, but also don't feel pressured to call me Ellie, I mean that is my name and you can use that, but also –"

"Okay Mom, stop," said Lizzy as she shot her a knowing smile.

Ellie shut up immediately, a knot quickly forming at the back of her throat.

"Oh god," said Lizzy, picking up on Ellie's reaction. "Please don't freak out."

Ellie brought her hand to her mouth. "I'm not freaking out," she said, her voice almost cracking.

"You're freaking out!" said Lizzy, a worried look on her face.

"I'm not freaking out!" said Ellie with a high-pitched voice.

"Yes, you are!" said Lizzy.

Ellie's voice cracked. "I'm sorry. It's just, it's the first time you've ever called me that."

A knot formed at the back of Lizzy's throat. She didn't know what to say. Seeing how much a simple word meant to Ellie was more emotional than she could've imagined.

Ellie wiped the tears falling from her eyes and looked at Lizzy.

"You know I love you, right?" she asked.

Lizzy nodded.

Ellie closed her eyes for a moment, reached out for Lizzy's hands, and smiled.

The two looked at each other and held each other's hands in silence.

After a few seconds, Lizzy broke the silence.

"I love you too."

At this, Ellie lost it. She enveloped Lizzy into a hug and let the tears drop freely. She couldn't believe what had just happened.

Lizzy let herself be hugged, and before she knew it, she joined Ellie in crying. This was it, what she had craved for as long as she could remember.

This was real.

This was home.

This was love.

As she cried, she felt like a weight was being lifted off her shoulders.

Ellie pulled away and looked at Lizzy. She wiped the tears from her face and then from Lizzy's face. Lizzy let her.

"Well, are you going to tell me all about Charlie then?" she asked.

Lizzy let out a laugh, wiped more tears from her eyes, and replied, "Yeah".


	36. Chapter 36

"That looks good honey," said Ellie as she planted a kiss on the top of Lita's head. "Are you all done with the cereal?"

"Yup," said the 7-year old.

"Do you also want a pop-tart?" she asked as she grabbed the dirty bowl.

"Yes please!"

As Ellie turned to put the bowl away and get the snack, Lizzy appeared in the kitchen, still in her pajamas.

"Good morning sleepy head, do you want some orange juice?" asked Ellie.

"Sure", said the teen as she sat around the breakfast table. She was the second to wake up, after Lita. The only one still in bed was Juan.

"Lizzy do you like my drawing?" asked Lita as she showed her the paper.

Her big sister eyed the drawing.

"Yeah, it looks great! Who are these supposed to be?" she said, pointing to the figures on the page.

"This is me and this Paige," she said, referring to her friend. "I'm going to give it to her when I see her after school."

"Cool, it's really good," said Lizzy.

"Thank you," said Lita.

As Ellie put down the orange juice and a couple of pop tarts on the breakfast table, Lizzy grabbed a glass a poured herself some juice.

"Lizzy, honey, do you fancy scrambled eggs or just cereal?" asked Ellie.

Lizzy considered this for a moment. "Yeah, I can have scrambled eggs," she said in the end.

"Alright," said Ellie as she walked back to the kitchen island. "Hopefully Juan will be up soon and he'll want scrambled eggs too"

Lizzy took a sip of her juice as Lita opened her pop-tarts and dived in.

"Oh, mom?" said Lizzy.

"Yes honey"

"So, uhm, my soccer practice was moved to the big stadium for today, and I was hoping you could drive me there," said the teenager.

Ellie stopped in her tracks and looked at her.

"You mean the one across town?"

"Yeah," said Lizzy, an apologetic look on her face.

"Why am I only hearing about this now?"

"I just got the message this morning. Some event which was supposed to be cancelled is going ahead and they're using our pitch for it."

"And they're not arranging transport?" asked Ellie.

"No, because it's so last minute. I can probably find someone to drive me there, but the problem is getting back, because it's going to be so late."

A few moments passed as Ellie took this in. Finally, she sighed.

"Well, I can't do it, Lita has her playdate with Paige and I promised Juan I would take him videogame shopping after school. You'll have to ask your dad."

Lizzy sighed. "Kay"

Pete appeared just as Ellie was serving a portion of scrambled eggs to Lizzy.

"Something smells good!" he said. He was already dressed and ready for the day.

"Morning honey," said Ellie.

"Good morning daddy," said Lita. "Come look at my drawing!"

Pete kissed Ellie on the cheek and then turned to Lita.

"Good morning sweetie, oh hey, that's awesome! Who are these?" he asked, pointing at the drawing.

"This is me and Paige. I'm going to see her after school today," said Lita.

"Oh that's right, you've got your playdate!"

"Yup!"

"Good morning to you too, kiddo" he said to Lizzy.

"Good morning," she replied, mouth full of eggs.

Pete grabbed a glass and served himself some orange juice, but didn't take a seat. He was always in a rush in the mornings.

"So, babe. Lizzy has something to ask you." Ellie started. ''Apparently, her soccer practice was moved to the big stadium across town and she needs a ride there and back, specially back. I've got Lita's playdate and shopping with Juan, so I can't do it."

She left the question hang in the air.

Pete needed a few moments to take this in. His gaze drifted back and forth between Ellie and Lizzy.

"I don't know," he started. "I'm supposed to meet the contractor then…"

"Please?" Lizzy asked.

Pete looked at her and considered her request.

"Ah, alright fine, I'll just rearrange," he cracked.

A huge smile swept across Lizzy's face. "Awesome! Can I drive us there as well?" she asked.

"Hey, don't push your luck with me, missy," he said.

The teenager smiled.

Pete downed the orange juice and took the glass to the sink. "Okay, gotta run, bye honey," he said as he kissed Ellie goodbye, on the lips. Lita made a 'yuck' face but didn't say anything. He came over to the breakfast table.

"Bye Lita," he said as he kissed her brow.

"Bye daddy," replied the little girl.

"Bye Lizzy," he said as he planted a kiss on the top of her head.

"Bye dad," she replied.

Everything became very still as Pete stopped dead in his tracks.

Lita's mouth dropped. Ellie's eyes widened.

It took Lizzy a second to understand their surprise.

Before anyone could speak, Pete turned and embraced Lizzy, hugging her so tight she struggled to breathe. Tears had gathered in his eyes.

When he pulled away, Lizzy noticed the moisture in his eyes.

"Oh god, _not you too_!" she exclaimed.

Pete wiped away his tears. "I just… got something in my eye," he said.

Lizzy rolled her eyes in a melodramatic way.

"You're both _such_ cry-babies," she said.

At this, Lita giggled.

"Hey!" exclaimed Ellie. "There's nothing wrong with showing your emotions!"

Lizzy rolled her eyes again.

"Can't I just appreciate this moment? I've been waiting for you to call me that for a very long time! I was starting to feel left out!" he said. He pulled in Lizzy for another hug, which she didn't resist.

Underneath it all, Lizzy was glad to be able to call him 'dad'. She hadn't even been planning to do it this morning, it had just slipped out, like when she had called Ellie 'mom'. And it felt so right, like everything was finally falling into place.

"Well, I'm gonna go before I embarrass this one even more," said Pete. "Love you all!" he shouted on his way out.

"Love you too!" all the girls back said in unison.

Lizzy could feel this day was going to be the start of something good.


	37. Chapter 37

"How about you do my bio homework and I write your English essay?" asked Savanna.

"No way, I'm just as bad in bio as you. Ask the brains over there," said Kylie, pointing over at Lizzy.

"Not a chance," said Lizzy, a smile on her face.

The three teenagers were on the school cafeteria having lunch, Kylie and Savanna sitting opposite Lizzy.

"C'mon, it's the end of term! Who has motivation to do work?" moaned Savanna.

"My answer is still no," said Lizzy.

"Please?"

"Nope."

Savanna sighed. "Ugh, you're the worst."

"Oh yeah, I'm terrible for not doing _your _work," said Lizzy.

All three girls laughed.

"Speaking of school work…" started Lizzy, "I wanted to let you guys know, that, I, uhm, I'm officially going to be in your classes for a while, at least until we graduate..."

Kylie and Savanna looked briefly at each other, then back at Lizzy. Slowly, their mouths opened in surprise.

"You're staying here?" asked Kylie.

"Yeah," said Lizzy with a smile.

"Oh my god!" Kylie and Savanna squealed at the same time.

Savanna stood to give her a hug, Kylie following close behind.

Lizzy laughed at their reactions.

"This is awesome!" said Savanna.

"This is great!" said Kylie, sitting back down again. "Wait, how, how are you staying here?"

"I'm staying with Pete and Ellie… permanently"

"You're getting adopted?" asked Kylie, eyebrows raised.

"I am," admitted Lizzy.

A few seconds passed while Kylie and Savanna digested the news.

"But wait, what about your birth mom?" asked Savanna.

"I'll still see her from time to time," said Lizzy, "but I won't live with her."

"Will she still have any sort of custody over you? Sorry, I'm just new to this," said Savanna.

"It's okay, and no, her parental rights were terminated on our last court date."

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Savanna.

Lizzy shook her head. "It's fine."

"Wait, so, that day when I drove you to meet with her…?" asked Kylie.

"She didn't have parental rights anymore," explained Lizzy.

Kylie's moth dropped open in surprise. "Gosh, I had no idea…"

"I still wanted to meet her and see how she was doing, though," said Lizzy. "She'll still be a part of my life, just, in a different way."

"Wow… well I think it's cool you're still able to see her," said Savanna.

"Yeah," smiled Lizzy.

"How do you feel about, you know, being adopted and all?" asked Kylie.

"Well," started Lizzy, "I tried pushing Pete and Ellie away, and that didn't work so…" she shrugged, "I don't know, I guess I'm stuck with them."

The two friends looked at each other briefly, feeling uncomfortable.

"I'm joking!" said Lizzy. "I'm happy, okay?"

"Oh!" the girls breathed a sigh of relief.

"Actually, I wanted to thank you guys," said Lizzy, "for being so understanding throughout this whole process. I know I haven't shared much… it's been hard to wrap my head around things sometimes, but, I'm finally in a good place, and I appreciate you guys being by my side."

The two girls smiled.

"Of course, that's what we're here for," said Kylie, extending her arm across the table.

"Always," said Savanna, extending her arm out as well.

Lizzy took both their hands and smiled.

"So, I guess no more fosters, huh? They're officially gonna be your parents!" said Savanna.

"Yeah, I guess!" Lizzy laughed.

"Are you calling them 'mom' and 'dad'?" teased Kylie.

A smile crept up on Lizzy's face. She lowered her gaze and blushed. "Does it matter?"

Kylie raised her eyebrows. "Oh my god, you are!"

Lizzy let out a laugh. "Fine, yeah, I am."

"Aww!" squealed Savanna.

"That's so cute!" exclaimed Kylie.

Lizzy blushed. "Anyway," she said, "the reason I bring it up is because our adoption court date is next week, and I wanted to invite you, guys. It would mean a lot if you could come."

"You have a court date already?" asked Kylie.

"Yeah… We've had a court date for a while but… I don't know. I guess it didn't feel real until recently."

"That makes sense." said Savanna. "Well, count me in!"

"Me too!" said Kylie. "Just text us the deets, we'll be there," said Kylie.

"Thank you, guys, you're the best," said Lizzy.

The three teens looked at one another with smiles on their faces. Lizzy had never felt so lucky to have them as her friends. Now there was only one other person she needed to invite…


End file.
